Seeing Red
by RyoshiMorino
Summary: Re-write of the Blue-Eyed Fox. As Naruto begins his three year training period, Jiraiya invites an unexpected person along for the ride. Follow them as they embark together for three years, and try not to kill one another. Smarter/stronger Naruto. Rated M for a good reason. Darker plot. No Harem.
1. Chapter 1

_**1:Hero's Departure and A Companion**_

* * *

><p>Naruto took one last look back at the village, already being a fair distance away, and it was only getting smaller. Jiraiya turned around and gave the boy a quizzical look, "Having second thoughts, Brat?" He said, hoping to rile the boy up just a little get him back to his usual self. For a short time after his battle with Sasuke Uchiha. He was still suffering from his injuries, despite the Kyuubi's healing abilities.<p>

The bandaged boy sighed and looked back at his sensei, "No...I'm just gonna miss everyone, that's all."

Jiraiya sighed, He's still depressed, he thought. "Look, this really isn't that abnormal. Some shinobi leave their villages for decades for a mission sometimes. We're only gonna be gone for three years or so."

"Yeah," Naruto muttered. "So...what are you gonna be teaching me, Pervy Sage?"

Jiraiya, for once, didn't even rise to the blond's nickname for him, "I'll be teaching how to use the Kyuubi's chakra, of course."

Naruto nodded, "And?"

"And what?" Jiraiya asked.

Now Naruto showed a reaction, scowling at the older man, "Wait...you're tellin' me that's all you were gonna teach me?!"

"Well, yeah," Jiraiya shrugged, "What else?"

Naruto grumbled and promptly turned around, back toward the village, "Not interested." Jiraiya's jaw hit the ground as his apprentice started walking away.

"Wait!" Jiraiya roared, jogging after him, "What do you mean you're not interested?! You're a Jinchuuriki! This is what you're supposed to learn!"

Naruto turned around and glared at him, "You're kidding, right?! Look at Gaara, for Kami's sake! He used Wind Style ninjutsu, an _elemental_ technique! Sasuke has Fire and Lightning! What do I have? SQUAT!"

Jiraiya was clearly startled by the boy's outburst, if only because the blond was resembling his former students crush, and later, wife. But Naruto wasn't finished, yet.

"Look, Pervy Sage, I get that I'm have this gigantic, moody furball inside me - "

_**I heard that, you little runt! **_The Kyuubi roared loudly enough to make Naruto wince, but he ignored it for once.

"- But that doesn't mean I don't want to learn anything else besides just using that damned, sickening chakra of his!" Naruto yelled, stepping forward as the Sannin stepped back. "All I really have is Shadow Clones, the Toad Summoning contract, and now the Rasengan! Sakura's learning medical ninjutsu, and I'm damned sure that Sasuke's not gonna be skipping through daisies while Orochimaru's got him! No way!"

"Jeez, kid," Jiraiya said defensively holding up his hands, "Just what the hell do you expect?"

"EVERYTHING!" Naruto roared loud enough that he was heard by a few people back in the village a good four miles away. "All of Team Seven have been taken in by one of the legendary Sannin! I wanna know what you know! I wanna be strong enough that I can bring Sasuke back to the village kicking and screaming if I have to! And I wanna be able to knock that snake-pedo on his ass so hard he'll never look at another person again!"

Jiraiya was beginning to see what Naruto's problem was, but Naruto was still ranting at him for one reason or another. Jiraiya was no fool. He'd heard about the teaching methods of the academy. Loose with normal students, except for maybe Iruka, whom the blond Jincuuriki looked to as a father figure from what he'd told him. Then old Sarutobi had told him about a few incidents meant to sabotage Naruto's education. Nothing obvious. That is not until later after Mizuki had tricked him into stealing the forbidden scroll. His tests and whatnot had been for advanced level shinobi that no academy student would ever need to look at. And no one had thought to check the boy's chakra levels as a solution of his with the Clone Jutsu, which had been rectified due to the Shadow Clone variation.

Then there was Kakashi, Jiraiya sighed in disappointment. The student of his student certainly made a name for himself, but the way he had neglected his other two students in favor of the Uchiha heir was downright shameful. While the white-haired man could understand at some level why Kakashi would do it, that understanding being the shared Kekkei Genkai, but to simply leave both his students to their own devices...

Jiraiya looked back Naruto's track record. His taijutsu was crap. Naruto was a hard-nosed brawler, hands down. In a straight up street fight, that was a good thing, but in a battle against shinobi, he would be the easiest target as he tended to rush headlong into things without thinking too much about it. As far as ninjutsu went, Naruto was right, he only had two techniques. Three if he counted the summoning.

Naruto was right. The control of the Kyuubi's chakra wouldn't be enough.

By now, Naruto had worn himself down...badly. His injuries still took a heft toll on him. The last hole in his chest from Sasuke's enhanced Chidori had down a immeasurable amount of damage that was only just finishing healing from a critical condition. He was leaning over, his hands braced on his knees, huffing and puffing like he'd just run a marathon around the Land of Fire.

Jiraiya sighed, knowing the blond was far more than right. "Alright, Naruto, you win." Naruto perked up at this, not sure that he'd heard him right. Jiraiya just grinned, "I'm still going to get you to learn how to control the Kyuubi's chakra, but while I'm at it, I'm gonna train you until your bones crack, and you can barely move an inch at the end of the day." Naruto finally smiled as Jiraiya made his intentions clear, "And when you wake up in the morning, we'll do it all again. Just remember, brat, you asked for this, and I'm not gonna hold anything back just so you can complain later, got it?!"

"Hai, Sensei!" Naruto yelled happily.

=x=

Not far from the pair's location, in a forest recently leveled by a high powered Wind Release, laid a certain kunoichi that had been on the receiving end of said jutsu. She was feeling extremely weak...and extremely pissed. "Fuck me..." she groaned, cracking her eyes open for the first time in days, "What the fuck hit me...oh yeah...a blonde bitch with a thing for that lazy fucktard..." She tried to move, but found her body trapped. Her eyes snapped fully open then, looking down at her hips in abject horror. "You...you're fuckin' shitting me!" Tayuya roared in anger and fear as she started scrabbling against the ground in an attempt to free herself, but to no avail.

"The Curse Mark!" Tayuya snapped, trying to activate it, but the mark on her neck only flared for a short moment, then died down as she felt the mark breaking apart, "Wait! I'm not fucking dead yet! Orochimaru!" In the back of her mind as the mark left her, she could have sworn she heard the Snake Sannin's chilling laughter. She now felt much weaker than before as the power of her mark left her, weak and helpless to move the lag that was trapping her. "You... you ass-eating son of a bitch! When I get my fucking hands on you I'll tear that nasty tongue out of your mouth and shove it up that silver-haired fucker's ass!" The girl howled angrily, some small amount of energy coming back to her.

But the pain in her legs had come back now ten-fold, and was blinding to her. She couldn't move at all as she raked her fingers on the ground, tearing them to shreds, "Kami damn it all!" She roared, "I'm not gonna die here! I'm free! I'm not'cher fuckin' puppet anymore! I'll live you selfish son of bitch, and I'll find you!" Her vision began to fade as she spent herself in the angered rant, collapsing to the ground, "I'll...kill...you..."

=x=

Now, a shorter distance away, Naruto lay against a tree, already tired from the walk, "Dammit, this sucks...why aren't I healing like I normally do?" He grumbled under his breath. Normally, as far as he knew, the Kyuubi always healed his wounds for him after a really rough fight. Even when he'd gotten stabbed right through his chest by Sasuke's Chidori for the first time. Although, said fox had not been happy about it. Naruto was still a little miffed about being called a runt by the creature.

_**That is because you are a runt, Runt!** _The fox answered him with a grunt of boredom, and Naruto had an image of him laying with his cage with his head on his paws. _**If you weren't so woefully pathetic, then I wouldn't have to help you all the time. You were damned lucky that you were already calling on my power before he struck with that blow, or else we'd both be dead...you for good, I on the other hand, would simple reform myself far away from the likes of your kind! **_

_Gee, Furball, tell me how you really feel, _Naruto thought sarcastically, _You know you could have just let me die, if freedom's what you really wanted, right? _The blond thought at the fox, hoping that he would, for once, receive a positive answer.

He wasn't disappointed. _**Bah, you really are an idiot, Runt. As if I would allow myself, let alone my...container, to be killed by another wretched Uchiha! That cursed clan has caused me no end of suffering since the dawn of the shinobi world. **_

_What's that supposed to mean? _Naruto asked, _You knew the Uchiha before the massacre? _

_**Damned right I did,** _the fox growled, surprisingly talkative for once, **_If I could call any Ningen family aside from my father, I would say that it had to be the Senju...and the Uchiha._**The last part came as a deep rumbling growl that the blond had come to know as the Kyuubi's way of expressing sheer loathing. _**All the wars you've heard about over the years have mainly centered around that clan. Those repugnant eyes of theirs made them see themselves as all-powerful beings, but the truth of it all was that those very eyes made them blind...blind with power. It was all they cared about. The first Uchiha, Indra, was so set on power, that when his father passed leadership over the clan to his brother, the first Senju, Indara fought with him for the right to lead the family, thus dividing the clan into two...**_

_So...wait, the Senju, like Tsunade, and the Uchiha are related? _Naruto asked, eager to keep the stoic fox talking.

_**I just told you that their ancestors were brothers, you dolt!** _The fox roared, nearly deafening the poor blond. _**And yes, they were related, and spawned greater clans than could even be imagined! **_

_You know a lot, _Naruto smiled, _Will you tell me more? I'd like to hear about the days like that...it sounds like such a simple life..._

**_Simple? Pah! It was hell on Earth. In those days, I was sealed away along with my brethren inside a single man. That man and his brother lead mankind into the age of shinobi. From these two men came the Senju, Uchiha, Hyuuga, and Kaguya clans. These four clans had the four great Kekkei Genkai. You know that the Senju had an incredible chakra, the Uchiha had the eyes of the sage, or a small variation of it, while the Hyuuga got their Byakugan from the brother, Hamura, and somewhere the Kaguya were born with the Shikotsumyaku, or Dead Bone Pulse, utilizing their own bones as weapons. In my opinion the Kaguya were closely related to the Hyuuga at one point in time. These two Kekkei Genkai were the only ones brought the world through my father's brother._**

_That's so cool, _Naruto thought, getting a little of his energy back, _Two men produced so many clans!? _

**_It's not that incredible,_ **The fox sighed, _**Back then, it wasn't uncommon for men to take more than one mate to preserve their blood lines in case an heir died in battle, or suffered a deadly illness. Many villages still practice this to keep a Kekkei Genkai clan alive. With each wife came a different element for the child they produced. **_

_Sounds like a crazy idea, _Naruto thought with a sigh, _Seriously, who could handle more than one girl..._

Naruto and the Kyuubi, for once, had the very same thought. _Pervy Sage/**The Pervert.**_At the shared thought, both broke into laughter. It was odd. For the longest time, he had thought the Bijuu truly hated him, but here they were, laughing. The fox caught the silent question from his container, and growled, _**I do still hate you, Runt. But, after the battle with the Uchiha brat, you've earned a small amount of my respect, not a small feat, mind you. And as the perverted sage said, it's going to be hell for the next three years. I intend to help you along in that prospect. **_

_Really?_

**_Oh, yes,_**the Kyuubi grinned, _**At the end of the day, when your bones and muscles are damaged beyond medical repair, I'll be the one to piece you back together, and watch the whole thing over again with a big smile on my face.** _Naruto just shivered at the thought of being put back together like a puzzle by the fox for his amusement. As much as he thought their conversation was an improvement to the Bijuu/Jinchuuriki relationship, the fox's sadistic side was still scary as hell. Sighing, the blond leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes, letting sleep overtake him.

The Kyuubi decided to follow suit, seeing as nothing interesting was going on now, and his container was still recovering. But, had the wind been blowing from the treeline instead of toward it, both would have caught the faint scent of blood in the air.

Jiraiya, as it would happen, was the one that caught the scent instead. He was gathering firewood for the evening, seeing as Naruto still needed rest from his injuries. Though the wind may have been blowing in the opposite direction, there was one thing that alerted the Sannin. Overhead, circling, was a group of carrion birds.

"That's the forest Naruto chased Sasuke through a few days ago..." the Sannin mused as he tied the bundle of wood together, "It's probably nothing," he sighed, turning back to the camp, but cast a glance back over his shoulder and sighed, "I'm probably imagining it, but what the hell?" He turned and set off toward the area the birds were circling.

Tayuya, meanwhile, had woken up again and was determined to free herself this time, with or without her legs attached. Her rational mind was very close to snapping at this point, thing very seriously about hacking herself free of the tree trunk with what few kunai she had left, but part of her worried she'd cut into herself...yet the other part thought that would be just fine as long as she got loose.

She couldn't feel her legs. Which likely meant that she'd lost all use of them for good, yet she couldn't bring herself to cut into her own flesh...yet. At this final thought she growled and dug into the ground, grasping back handfuls of earth and grass trying once more to claw her way free. Her fingers were raw and bleeding badly from her attempts. She was working herself to death.

"Fuck if I'm gonna die here," she growled aloud, "Not until I kill that Orochi-teme for leaving me like this!"

"So you're one of Orochimaru's flunkies, huh?" Said a voice from above her, startling her into looking up. There sat a man with stark white hair pulled back into a spiny pony-tail, with a horned hitai-ate around his head with the word oil painted on it in black kanji. He wore a flamboyant red vest that looked like it came straight out of a Kabuki theater along with a green-grey outfit underneath. "I could help you, but you'd have to give me a very, very damned good reason to do so."

Tayuya couldn't believe her luck that a person had come along and found her, and not only that, though he looked rather odd, he had a aura of power radiating from him. This man was as strong, if not stronger, than Orochimaru!

The girl looked up at him piteously, "I don't care what you ask me to do. I'll do anything you want, just so long as you get me out of this mess...please!" She begged. Jiraiya was no fool, and knew that her words could very well be an act, but there was a sincerity in her words that made him think.

He jumped down from his perch atop the fallen tree and landed in front of her, crouching down to her eye level. "What I want from you, Girl, since you seem dead set on killing my old teammate, is for you, a former Oto-nin, to lead me to his hideouts...all of them...Swear by the Rikudō Sennin, and I'll help you out. If not, then I'll leave you here for the birds."

"F-former teammate...fuck...you can't be Jiraiya?!" Tayuya yelled, raising a little from where she lay.

"The same." Jiriaya nodded.

Tears sprang to the girl's eyes, "I swear! I'll do whatever you want! I just want a piece of that bastard when you catch him!"

"Done!" He bit down on his thumb, "Summoning Jutsu!" There was a large puff of smoke that lifted the man from the ground as he now stood atop a gigantic green toad with two swords strapped to his sides. "Gamahiro-san, good of you to come." Jiraiya greeted.

Gamahiro looked up at his summoner, "_**Good to see you, too, Jiraiya-san, but why have you summoned me here? I see no enemies**_**_ around_.**"

Jiraiya pointed his attention down toward the pinned kunoichi, "The reason I summoned you was to help lift this tree off of her. I could probably do it with my sage mode, but it would take too long to gather the required chakra to do it. Think you can manage?"

"**_As you wish, but she will be in great pain once I move the trees,_**" Hiro cautioned, "_**I have some of Ma's healing oils if you think they will help?**_"

"That'd be great," Jiraiya nodded, and jumped back to the ground and grasped the girls hands, "We'll get you outta there now. Just hang on and don't move."

"R-right," Tayuya squeaked, wary of the giant toad as he moved into position. Gamahiro bent down and started moving the massive trees one by one until he picked the last one off of Tayuya, the girl giving a pained, yet relieved cry as she was freed. Jiraiya pulled her out of the debris so he could have a look at her legs. He didn't like what he found. Sure enough, Tayuya's legs were mangled beyond recognition. Tayuya took one look at herself and nearly passed out again, "Fuck..."

"This is gonna hurt," Jiraiya sighed, his hand starting to glow a blue-green color with chakra, "The bones are completely shattered -"

"You mean I'll never walk again," Tayuya whimpered.

"No," Jiraiya said, "That's not what I meant. It's just going to take me a while to get all these fragments back into place. I may not be a full medical-nin, but I'm good at setting bones, and piecing them back together." He said, already beginning to draw the pieces back together, making the girl wince.

"C-c-could you keep talking?" Tayuya grit out, "G-give me something else to focus on besides this fucking pain!"

"Alright," Jiraiya said absently, "While you'll be traveling with us, you'll be training alongside my apprentice as we search for Orochimaru's hideouts. Of course I'll keep a close eye on you, but I expect you'll hold up your end of the bargain."

"Fuck yeah I will, ya jackass," Tayuya snapped before hissing in pain as her bones knit back together, "I'm a lot of fucking things, but a liar ain't one of 'em! OW!" Jiraiya pulled a large piece of wood out of her left leg.

"Good to know," Jiraiya smirked, "If that's the way you think, I may take you on as a second apprentice. You and Naruto would get along fine, I think."

That name struck a chord in Tayuya's memories as she recalled the pineapple-haired Nara calling his blond friend that name before he lept over her after the Uchiha. "You mean that blond fucker with the loud mouth?" Tayuya asked.

"That's him," Jiraiya smirked, "Had a little run-in with him?"

"He fucking jumped over me while we were in the middle of a fight and high-tailed it after that Uchiha-fag!" Tayuya spat angrily at the memory of that goofy face of his appearing over her as he jumped, then to add insult to injury, he had mocked her before he left her with the Nara.

Jiraiya chuckled, "That sounds like him. Gamahiro, the oil if you please?" He said, looking up at the green toad. Gamahiro formed a few hand signs and a large yellow vat of oil appeared next to them. Jiraiya quickly dipped his hands in and applied it to her legs. Almost immediately her legs were numb, making her sigh in relief.

"That feels so much better," she sighed, "What the hell do they use in that oil?"

"_**We secrete the base oil from our skin,**_" Gamahiro explained, "_**We then boil it while mixing in healing herbs that only grow on our mountain. We keep those secret so shinobi won't try to steal them...as a certain Sannin once did.**" _The toad looked at Jiraiya in amusement while the old sennin. Jiraiya had the good grace to blush as Tayuya cast a glance in his direction as he worked.

"So I was trying to take a few herbs to Tsunade," Jiraiya grumbled, "Big deal...not like she would have thanked me anyway...not the way I wanted." Tayuya couldn't hold back the snicker as the old man pouted like a child, but soon hissed as some of the pain came back for a moment before ebbing away again.

An hour or so passed before Jiraiya finished with Tayuya's legs, the fragmented bones now reformed, yet still brittle, having fractures along them until the oil finished its work. He bandaged her legs up, and lifted the girl onto his back, and started back toward camp. Gamahiro bade them farewell before dispelling himself back home.

Naruto was still sound asleep when they arrived, not that Jiraiya was surprised. The Kyuubi's chakra was powerful, and all Jinchuuriki had the fast healing abilities, but Naruto still had a fair amount of damage done to him. As Jiraiya set the girl down, and started unpacking a bed roll for her, he thought about what he'd sensed when he confronted the boy in the hospital about the trip. Surprisingly, he had sensed a large amount of Nature chakra emitting from the wound. From the look of the wound, and from Kakashi's debrief, Sasuke had used a Chidori on him twice, but the second had been obviously effected by the Curse Mark.

Naruto's body, though used to the demonic chakra of the Kyuubi, was all but new to the Nature chakra, which explained why it might have been afflicting him so badly.

"What the fuck happened to him?" Tayuya asked as she laid eyes on the blond, who was covered in bandages himself from face to torso. Even the horrendous orange jump suit he was wearing looked shredded.

She was picked up again when Jiraiya had her bed ready, and laid down. She didn't complain. The most sleep she'd had was when she'd fallen unconscious from trying to get out from under the trees. It was strange to her, though, because when she slept on the ground, she normally only had a blanket. Jiraiya had given her a small roll to lay on with the blanket, and a small pillow to rest on. She'd never had this sort of luxury.

"He fought with the Uchiha you were sent to retrieve," Jiraiya explained quietly, "Apparently after he got past you, he and Sasuke met at the Valley of the End, and fought. He was nearly killed, and probably would have been if Sasuke hadn't shown a small ounce of mercy as he and Naruto squared off...strange as it may seem, the two did share a friendship...a rivalry of sorts."

"Shit, didn't know the little spazz was that strong," Tayuya sighed, looking the blond over once more, "No wonder that snake bastard wanted him so badly."

Jiraiya sighed, "That's the main reason I got him to come along." He said, rubbing the back of his head, "Getting Sasuke back to the village is one of his goals. I tried to convince him to give up on him, but he's got a stubborn streak in him a mile long. Plus he made a promise to a girl that he'd bring Sasuke back."

Tayuya sneered, crossing her arms over her chest, "A girl, huh? Let me guess, she has a thing for the Uchiha, and Whiskers over there has a thing for her?"

"Nailed it," Jiraiya sighed, "He's a lot like me in that respect. Can't get the girl he wants to give him the time of day without getting the crap kicked outta him."

Tayuya snorted, thinking that he needed a good knock in the head just as said blond started to wake. Naruto groaned a little from the soreness of his body as he stretched, his cerulean eyes fluttering open. Jiraiya grinned as he waited for the boy's reaction as he looked around. Tayuya just scowled at him when his eyes landed on her and widened. "Surprise, Shithead!"

"Wah! YOU!" Naruto yelped, and jumped up, immediately regretting the action as his injuries ached. Naruto doubled over, still keeping his eyes on the girl, "What the hell are you doing here!?"

Tayuya just grinned at him, "Doing better than you, it looks like! Got enough wraps there, Shithead?"

The blond gennin advanced on her, ready to deck her, but a strong knock to the head from Jiraiya stopped him. "ARGH! WHAT THE HELL PERVY SAGE!"

"There's no need to be a brat, Kid," the old sage said, "She's not one of Orochimaru's lap dogs anymore. I convinced her to help us."

"Yeah, right," Naruto huffed, flopping back to the ground, "What makes you so sure she's gonna help? Or how she's gonna - "

"Um, hello?" Tayuya snapped, "Ex-enemy kunoichi here! I know where my fucktard boss's bases are! All of them!"

"And she swore an oath to me that's she'd help us," Jiraiya stepped in, "As long as she got a shot at Orochimaru herself, then she's in. She doesn't even have her Curse Mark anymore, or else she would have been long gone by now."

The blond was still skeptical at this point, and Tayuya's cocky smirk wasn't doing much for his temper at the moment. "What good is she going to do us?" Naruto asked, looking pointedly at her bandaged legs, "She can't walk, can she?"

Tayuya bristled, ready to pummel the blond, but Jiraiya intervened, "No, she can't walk, Naruto. When I found her, half the forest had been leveled, Sabaku no Temari's work, I'd guess, and she was lying underneath a pretty big pile. It's a wonder she wasn't crushed from the get go, or that she hadn't bled out."

Tayuya just paled, "Way to fucking scare an injured girl, Jiisan."

Jiraiya gained a tic mark at the nickname, _Why can't I ever find a kid that'd give some respect? I don't do anything to...okay, maybe I do deserve...some of it...but not all, right? _"It's no less true...what's your name, anyway? I never asked."

"Does it really fucking matter?" Tayuya asked, "I'm not gonna be your friend through any of this, you know?"

"I'd like to know the name of someone I'm going to be traveling with," Jiriaya stated with a sigh and crossed his arms, "Plus, when I'm training you alongside the brat, then I'd like to know what I should carve on your tombstone."

_Tombstone? _Tayuya didn't like the sound of that, but it couldn't have been worse than what she'd had to go through with Orochimaru and Kabuto looking over her shoulder. "It's Tayuya, if you gotta know. Happy?"

"No," Naruto grumbled.

"Who asked you, ya blond shit-brained jackass!?" Tayuya roared, nearly tipping herself over. Naruto just grinned and waved at her to come and get him.

"Too bad, Red, you're not going anywhere for now!" Naruto laughed.

Jiraiya sighed, "Naruto, keep antagonizing her like that and I'll make you carry her all the way to Suna." Jiraiya said, making the blond Jinchuuriki pale.

"Y-you wouldn't!"

"Try me," Jiraiya grinned, having gotten the upper hand with the boy for once.

Naruto groaned and scrubbed his hands through his hair, "Nyah, if she does cause any trouble, you can bet Baa-chan's gonna hear about that fake request for mixed bathing in the onsens you had me place!"

Now it was Jiraiya's turn to go pale, "You wouldn't dare - ?!"

"Try me," Naruto mimicked, smiling a foxy grin. Tayuya was snickering away at the two of them. _Not even Kidomaru made me laugh this much_, she thought as a stray giggle slipped past her. Naruto looked at her with his grin still plastered on his face, which only widened as the girl laughed again.

_She has a cute laugh_, he thought for a moment, causing the Kyuubi to lift his head in interest since the blond was showing a slight interest in a vixen other than his teammate. Through Naruto's eyes, he saw the girl sitting in front of them. For a ningen, she was pleasing to look at. Her skin shade lighter than Naruto, and her hair, which was slightly down her back, was red. Not like his previous vessels, this was a bit lighter than that. More like a dull red that had been mixed with pink, or orange. And though she was obviously a hardened kunoichi that had killed more than once, as he could smell the faint traces of blood from others on her, her eyes were a warm brown that made him think of Mito's favorite treat; chocolate.

**_She's certainly better than that bubblegum banshee he used to hang around with,_**the Kyuubi thought snidely, again resting his head on his paws. He would make a note to question his container about her later...or tease him. Which ever he felt like. But, fortunately or unfortunately for the blond, that would come later as the Kyuubi needed to focus on Naruto's injuries. He would be done soon.

=x=

As the evening wore on, Naruto seemed to gain some mobility back as the Kyuubi healed the worst of his injuries, and by that time he had gotten used to Tayuya being around. As it turned out, the kunoichi was fairly sheltered about life outside Orochimaru's clutches. When Jiraiya dished out supper that evening, instant meals that only needed hot water, ramen in Naruto's case, she was surprised at how much of it there was. Normally a meal to her was a soldier pill, or a few grains of rice. She had been conditioned to live off the bare minimum of nutrients, and keep her body strong without much food.

"Not while I'm around," Jiraiya pointed out, "I don't let my students work on an empty tank. But speaking of dietary needs, Naruto, you need to start eating other things besides ramen."

"What?" Naruto asked through a mouthful of noodles, "But why?"

Jiraiya palmed himself in the face, "To get you to grow! Haven't you ever wondered why you're such a runt? It's because you don't eat right!"

Naruto huffed and slurped the rest of his ramen down, "Yeah, well you try getting food when the stores throw you out every time you try to go shopping. I only managed to get cup ramen from them because I'd transform into someone else, or have Hokage-jij or Kakashi-sensei with me."

Jiraiya supressed an angry growl at this. Hadn't the Hokage tried to do anything about Naruto's treatment in the village? Kami only knew what would happen once he found out who his parents were...and who he was, too. Jiraiya was not looking forward to that...not at all.

Tayuya was too busy slurping down her own dinner to listen to them. It was way better than soldier pills, that was certain!

Naruto gabbed another cup and poured some water into it, "So, where are we going?"

Jiraiya just shrugged, "For now? I just want to gauge your abilities. So we'll stay in the next town we come across for a short time. Then, when Tayuya's better suited for travel, we'll head towards Kiri to resupply. By then, you two should be at one hundred percent, and I'll check out your chakra natures."

"Chakra natures?" Tayuya and Naruto mumbled/asked as one had a mouthful of food.

"Yes," Jiraiya nodded, "It's what tells you what element you're best suited for." He explained, "For example, Sasuke's primary element is Raiton, and his secondary element is Katon. That's not uncommon for Uchiha clansmen to have, but the Raiton is slightly rarer. I think I've only ever seen Kakashi use the Raiton in our village."

Tayuya shrugged, "Not like it fucking matters. I'm a Genjutsu type. Combat's not really my thing."

"Not for long," Jiraiya grinned, making the girl shiver, "See, while I'm training you, I'm basically starting from the beginning with Naruto, so making both of you fighters will be like killing two birds with one stone."

Naruto gave him a deadpan look, "You're...not gonna throw me off another cliff...are you?"

"CLIFF?!" Tayuya spat, "What the fuck are you talking about?! I'm not going over any goddamned cliff for training!"

Jiraiya no answer, making the two teens nervous.

"Um...Per-i'm mean, Jiraiya-sensei?" Naruto said, shivering, "You're not gonna do that again...right?"

"Y-y-yeah, besides, I'm a girl! You're not supposed to treat girls like that!" Tayuya stammered.

Again, he kept quiet, but silently he was braying with laughter on the inside. Torturing - Trainging these two would be very amusing for the Gama Sennin. Very amusing indeed. "We'll just have to wait and see," Jiraiya finally said, giving a pointed looked to Naruto, "It all depends...on how much you respect your sensei!"

"Hai, sensei!" Naruto yelped, snapping a salute. He never wanted to go through that again.

Tayuya just nodded, making a mental note to...try and keep her temper down. While it wasn't as bad as being a guinea pig, she had no desire whatsoever to be thrown off a cliff. "So...what are you gonna teach me?" Tayuya asked, "Most I've ever done is use my Doki to smash my opponents into dust. Or slit someone's throat while I have them under a Genjutsu."

Jiraiya scratched the back of his head, "Well, Naruto asked me to teach him everything, so to be fair, I'll try to do the same for you. Though I doubt you'd be able to sign the Toad contract, perhaps we can find you a suitable summoning contract somewhere." He said, grasping at straws for a moment, "Maybe I can get you some scrolls on medical ninjutsu -"

"No fucking thanks," Tayuya said, "I've been around nothing but med-nins, and they make me fucking sick. The things they can do? I'd rather be a combat fighter than a healer."

"Suit yourself," the old man shrugged, "so it's strength training and Ninjutsu for both of you."

Naruto had started on his fourth cup by now, "Sounds great to me. I'll need something good to kick that Hebi, and Teme's ass."

"You'll need a coffin if you keep that attitude," Jiraiya said, "Orochimaru's a Sannin like me, and I know for a fact that you can't lay a finger on me. You think a new jutsu is gonna be enough?"

Tayuya nodded to this, "Too fucking right. I've seen that fucker get out of some bad scrapes, and come out on top that would take most Jonin down in a heartbeat." She said, "And if that Uchiha's gonna be with him, then you can bet your ass that he's gonna make him just as strong as he is, if not stronger so he can use his body in a couple more years."

Naruto growled and looked down at the ground, "That's not gonna happen. I swore I'd bring him back, and I never make a promise." He said, thinking about their last confrontation, "Besides, Sasuke's not the type to let someone use him like that...he's more likely to use Orochimaru instead, then he'll run as soon as he's gotten what he wanted from him."

=Unknown Location=

Sasuke Uchiha stumbled into the halls of the base, weak after the long trek. The dark halls were lit by candles along the wall, illuminating the smiling figure waiting for him. "My, my, Sasuke-kun, so good of you to come." Orochimaru smiled.

Sasuke's Sharingan flared, revealing the fully matured three tomoe, "You promised me power..." Sasuke said evenly, "You will teach me everything you know. Then I'll kill him. My brother will die by my hands."

Orochimaru laughed lightly, "Quite a goal you have, Sasuke-kun. Very well. You will know all that I know. But whether you can kill Itachi-kun, or not remains to be seen."

* * *

><p><em><strong>This is the first chapter of the re-write. Hopefully this story turns out better than the original, and I hope you can enjoy it just as much as you enjoyed the first. Until next time. Read, enjoy, review!<strong>_

_**AN: Not a harem FIC. **_


	2. Chapter 2

_**2: Uzumaki Style Taijutsu: The Dancing Dragon**_

* * *

><p>Naruto, for once, woke up bright and early. Not because he wanted to, no. He woke up to the groans of pain and agony from his newest companion. He glanced over at her sleepily still rubbing the sleep from his eyes. She was sitting up, hunched over her own legs and clutching them to her chest in clear pain.<p>

"What the hell's up with you?" Naruto asked groggily, yawning.

Tayuya simply glared at him, "What the fuck's wrong?! My fucking legs feel like they're being set on fire, you dipshit! That's what's wrong!" Tayuya screeched loudly, making Naruto cover his ears, and come fully awake. Her yells also awakened a fairly cranky fox.

_**Grr, I take back what I said about her being better than that banshee! **_He grumbled and covered his massive ears with his paws, _**I think she might be worse! **_

_Cut her some slack, _Naruto groaned, _She's injured, remember? _

_**I've eaten people that didn't complain that much! **_The Kyuubi snapped, but Naruto managed to ignore him for a moment while he got up to try and aid the girl before she injured herself further. "What do you need? Maybe I can help?" Naruto offered.

Tayuya ground her teeth to bite back the tongue-lashing that would have come. The blond was only trying to ease her pain, yet she was ready to send him packing had she not watched her tongue. Before she could give him a civil reply, Jiraiya appeared next to her, a small jar in his hands, "It's nothing a bit of toad oil won't fix." He told the two, "After this, you should be able to go without pain unless you over exert yourself."

Naruto watched him as he unbound Tayuya's legs, seeing now the damage that had been done to her. While the oil that had been applied yesterday had improved her mangled legs, Tayuya was still horrified by the state of her legs. The gashes caused by the trees had healed over, yet the angry red scores were still there, and so were the broken bones.

"Damn/_**Damn**_." Naruto and the Kyuubi said at once when they saw the injuries.

"Indeed," Jiraiya said as he applied the oil to Tayuya's wounds, the girl giving a sigh of relief as he did. "That's better isn't it?"

"Much," Tayuya sighed, "Thanks, Jiisan."

Jiraiya growled at her, "What did I say about respect, young lady?"

Tayuya just grinned at him, "Um, I forget?"

"Cheeky," Jiraiya grinned back, "I like that." Naruto smirked and handed him a fresh roll of bandages. "Thanks, Naruto. Now, how are you feeling?"

Naruto flexed his muscles experimentally, feeling no pain in his limbs, then prodded his chest, "Looks like I'm back to normal. I can't feel my chest wound anymore."

"Good," Jiraiya grinned, "Because today, while we rest here, you and I will start on your Taijutsu training. And Tayuya-chan," Tayuya growled at the affectionate, "You had best pay attention, too. As far as I know, this is one of the most effective Taijutsu styles I've ever seen."

"Really?" Naruto asked excitedly, "Cool! What's it called!?"

Jiraiya sighed, not wanting to draw this out, yet reluctant to continue. "_Uzuken: Ryuu no Mai_."

Naruto widened his eyes, "U..Uzu?"

Jiraiya nodded, "That's right, Naruto."

"As in Uzumaki?" Naruto breathed out.

"Also right," Jiraiya nodded again. "And, as you might have already guessed, you are an Uzumaki, not the clanless orphan everyone thought you were."

Naruto was quiet for a moment, but Tayuya noted that his hands were shaking. And not just his hands. Naruto's entire frame was shaking from head to toe. Tayuya looked at his face, and saw that his blue eyes were flashing a dangerous red she'd never seen before. Jiraiya saw this and sighed, "Let it out, already!"

Naruto growled, "Why wasn't I told?"

"That you had a clan?" Jiraiya asked, shrugging, "Sarutobi-sensei made a law that no one could speak about certain things about you. Your parents, your condition," he said pointedly looking at his stomach, "Nor your clan. Some of them had valid reasons. The one about your clan and family was the simple fact that you, being who you are, one of the last surviving Uzumaki, would have enemies without even knowing it."

"So what?" Tayuya sniped, "He's the last one? What the fuck happened to the rest of them?" She asked, "I've never even heard of the clan before?"

"Yeah, spill it!" Naruto snapped, "I wanna know everything!"

Jiraiya nodded, having seen this coming. "The Uzumaki clan was, in essence, an off-shoot of the Senju clan, which gave them a chakra like no other clan, not even the Senju." He said, looking back to the boy, "You have that overwhelming chakra, and more, Gaki. The Uzumaki were chakra monsters, almost like Bijuu, which made them feared throughout the lands. They were masters of Kenjutsu, Fuinjutsu, and Taijutsu. And they were the only shinobi capable of surviving a Bijuu being extracted from their bodies."

Naruto thought this over and decided to put a question to his tenant, _Did you know? _

The fox raised his head lazily, **_What do you think, Brat?_**

_And you said nothing?! _

_**Why should I have to say anything to you...period? The only reason I started speaking to you is because you barged in here, demanding my chakra, then you had the idiotic luck of returning here time and again, forcing my hand. **_

_I want to know about my family, damn you!_

The Kyuubi raised his head to full height now, grinning maniacally, _**Oh, there's a nice change! Poor little Naruto, cast out all his life finds out he had a clan, and now he looks to me for answers because his teacher probably won't say anything. Well you can forget it, Brat!** _The Kyuubi sank back down to the floor and rested his head on his paws, _**Perhaps when you can beat that sensei of your's and gained a little more of my respect, then I'll consider telling you a little about your clan.** _

Naruto growled and looked back at his sensei, who was waiting for his next question, "What about my parents?"

"Gag order," Jiraiya sighed, "No one except the Hokage can give me authorization to tell you, much as I'd like to. I'll send Tsunade message in a day or so and ask her about it." He said, crossing his arms, "Anything else?"

"No," Naruto huffed, "Now teach me my family's Taijutsu!"

Jiraiya nodded, "First create a few clones, fifteen or so, and I'll demonstrate." He said, and as Naruto did as he was told, leaving Tayuya slightly awed by the number of clones, Jiraiya reached out and pulled the hitai-ate down over the original's eyes.

"What the fuck?!" Naruto roared, and Tayuya snickered, along with his clones.

"You will sit here, with that over your eyes, while I take out your clones," Jiraiya ordered, "And if you try to peek, Tayuya will knock you in the head, understood?"

"H-Hai!" Naruto squeaked.

Tayuya simply grinned at the man, a silent thank you on her lips.

"Alright, clones, let's get to work!" Jiraiya roared, jogging to the middle of the field. All the eyes of the clones were on him, wondering what he was doing, but they followed. Jiraiya turned about, and took a stance, first lifting his left leg up, and raising his hands, palms up, fingers facing out, then dropped into in a lower stance, one arm out in front and the other behind, the palms still facing up, "Come and get me."

A cockier Naruto-clone grinned, "CHARGE!"

As he launched himself, the rest of the clones followed. A big mistake as Tayuya watched in fascination. Jiraiya took the first clone down by whipping forward, his feet never leaving the ground, and knocking his feet out from under him. Next he grabbed the same clone by the arm and swung him overhead, slamming him into the next one, dispelling them both at once. The movements were almost like a dance as whirled around, taking down the clones in a whirlwind of motion. They way he whipped his arms around was almost like he was using a sword.

The final clone was taken out with a reverse elbow strike to the throat, and she caught Naruto grimacing, which made her think he was peeking and conked him on the head.

"OW!" Naruto yelped, "What the hell! I wasn't looking!"

"The hell you weren't!" Tayuya smirked, "I saw it on your face!"

Jiraiya, having dispatched the last clone with ease, smiled and walked over to the pair. "That was because he was experiencing everything his clones went through." He explained, "See, Kage Bushin is unique among the clone techniques. Whatever the clone learns, the user learns as well."

Naruto's brow shot up at this, "That's what all those memories were!?"

"Yep," Jiraiya smirked, "The only thing you don't get out of it is physical training. Your mind will know everything your clones learn. It's really handy for training."

Naruto just sighed, "Wish I'd know that after I just learned the stupid jutsu."

Tayuya snickered again, much to the blond's annoyance, "Really, Shithead? Even I know about that Kinjutsu, and I'm from Iwa!"

A vain appeared on Naruto's head, "Would you _please_ stop calling me that?!"

"No," Tayuya smirked.

"Anyway," Jiraiya interrupted before the argument go any further, "With the Shadow clones, you can get this down in a few days practice while Tayuya heals. Then when we move on, I'll test you in a spar."

Naruto nodded, "I get it, though I won't get the exercise from the practice, I'll get the methods down." He grinned, "Man this is awesome! I wish I'd known this the minute I learned this jutsu!"

Jiraiya just sighed, thinking that since Kakashi also knew the jutsu himself, he would have told him...lazy Jonin.

=x=

Back in Konoha, a certain Jonin felt an urge to sneeze. _Hmm, that's the third time today...guess I'm popular. _He thought positively, and went back to reading his newly purchased signed volume of _Icha Icha Paradise. _If only he knew.

=x=

"Position two!" Jiraiya yelled, "Into three! Five! One!"

In front of him, to Tayuya's utter shock, were at least two hundred blond knuckleheads. All of whom were trying to keep up with the random movements Jiraiya was calling out. It was all part of the Ryuu no Mai, but the old man had mixed up the movements to keep the blond on his toes. In the hours that had gone by, Tayuya found herself wanting to join in, just sitting around on an earth chair made by Jiraiya was getting boring...and uncomfortable.

"You! Fifteenth in row six from the right! Keep you arms up!" Jiraiya roared. "Thirty-seven in row four from the left, lift that knee higher! Positions four, six, nine and one, double time!"

Meanwhile, the real Naruto was...hanging out. Literally. After he had created his clones, Jiraiya had surprised the blond and tied him up. The next few moments were hilarious for the red-head as Jiraiya suspended the blond from a high hanging tree branch, and tied a boulder to his ankles, telling him to complete two hundred pull-ups, and only then would he be released.

"This...is..._bullshit_!" Naruto groaned after completing number eighty-seven, "How is this an Uzumaki training method?!"

"Quit your bitchin'," Tayuya smirked up at him, "You wanted to learn the fuckin' Taijutsu, right? Jiisan said you needed to get some strength training in, too. So suck it up, and shut the fuck up!"

Naruto growled, "I hope you have to go through this next!"

Tayuya just grinned up at him, "Yeah, no fuckin' way, Shithead. Jiisan likes me too much."

"Not that much!" Jiraiya yelled back to the pair, "As soon as your legs can handle it, you're up there with him!"

Tayuya paled and huffed, crossing her arms over her chest, "Me and my big fat fuckin' mouth!" She growled, much to the airborne blond's amusement.

"Told you so! Told you so!" Naruto chirped happily before hitting one hundred.

Tayuya flipped him the bird, "Eat shit, ya blond bimbo."

"Hey! I'm a guy!" Naruto shouted indignantly.

Tayuya looked up at him innocently blinking her eyes in surprise, "Oh? _Really_?"

"Damned troublesome woman," Naruto grumbled, causing a certain lazy Nara to sneeze. "Hey, Pervy Sage! How long do I have to keep this up!? My legs are gonna pop off!"

"They'll grow back," Jiraiya laughed, "And until you can master the Taijutsu, then you'll need the strength training. You're strong on your own, but not near strong enough to use this technique effectively."

Naruto grumbled something under his breath and grudgingly started again. "One hundred and one."

Another hour later, and Naruto was finally finished. He lay sprawled out on the ground, his wrists and ankles raw from the rope. "That...was brutal." The blond panted, not caring that Tayuya was laughing at him, "How the hell did my family members put up with this shit?"

Jiraiya was sitting on a rock just beside him, having dismissed (Beaten to oblivion) his clones, he was certainly impressed at how quickly Nartuo had completed his exercise. "Honestly, that was the watered-down version," he said, much to the teens' horror, "If that had been the true version, then you would have started out on the ground, tied to the first rock by your feet, while your hands were bound to another rock, which would have been the same size, and suspended over a tree branch with a line holding it in place. That same line would have been cut, the rock would have dropped, hoisting you into the air, and equaling out the weight of the other rock."

Tayuya was utterly horrified, "That'd snap his fuckin' back, you crazy old fuck!"

"Precisely why I changed it up," Jiraiya said, "It takes a strong back to go through that sort of training without getting killed." He grinned at the downed blond, "It's like I said, your clan were tough."

"No shit," both teens said simultaneously, surprising the pair, and causing the old sage to laugh at them.

"But you did good today, Naruto," Jiraiya chuckled, "Your clones did the movements perfectly after a few short hours. Another couple of days, and you should be ready for the spar."

Naruto cracked a small grin from where he lay, "Great...so where do we go from there?" He asked, "I mean what's after the Taijutsu training?"

Jiraiya thought for a moment, "Well, as soon as Tayuya's well enough for travel, a day or two given the properties of the Toad oil, we'll head the next village for supplies like I said, and once we find out what your affinities are, we'll travel to the next hidden village that specializes in that particular jutsu."

Tayuya looked down at her legs, not believing she'd be able to walk again so soon, but then again, the oil was working wonders she'd never even seen Kabuto do. "What about me?"

Jiraiya gave the girl a look, "The same applies to you, Tayuya-chan - "

"Don't call me that!"

" - once I find out your chakra nature, you'll be trained accordingly." He said, ignoring the outburst. "And remember, I'm giving you some leeway here, betray my trust," he gave her a dark look, "and I'll make you wish you were still under that tree."

Tayuya broke out in a cold sweat and nodded nervously, "I'm not a fuckin' back stabber, I already told you I never lie!"

"Good," Jiraiya grinned, "Now, Naruto, there's a river nearby. Help Tayuya down to the water so she can bathe - "

The blond shot to his feet. "_WHAT_?!"

"_AS IF_!" Tayuya snarled, "No fuckin way am I strippin' bare-ass in front of this shithead!"

"He's only going along to make sure you stay out of trouble...like drowning, or getting swept off with the current?" Jiraiya pointed out, and sighed, "And I hate to be rude, Tayuya-chan - "

"Oi!"

" - But three days under a pile of trees has done nothing but make you...stink." Jiraiya plugged his nose, "And keeping clean is a good way to stay healthy, so either go down to the river with him...or you can go down there with _me_...and you should already know my reputation with women."

Both teen shivered at that. Naruto didn't care much for the girl, but there was no way he was letting Jiraiya take her down to the river so he could leer at her the whole time. "Fine...I'll take her."

Tayuya growled, blushing as red as her hair, "You try anything funny, and I'll - "

"Yeah, yeah," Naruto groaned as he trudged over and picked her up in his arms, gaining a yelp from the girl, "Come on, let's get this over with."

"I mean it, Shithead," Tayuya growled, still blushing, "If I so much as - "

"Whatever," Naruto said, ignoring the threat, "Not like I've never seen a naked girl before." Jiraiya scoffed at this.

"You're wondrous jutsu does not count, Brat!" He laughed.

Naruto turned and looked back over his shoulder, "How the hell do you think I came up with that?"

"AHA!" Jiraiya crowed, "so you admit you've peeped before!"

"NO!" The blond roared, making Tayuya cover her ears at being so close to him, "I got chased into the bathhouse by those idiots that like to hate me for no damned reason! Of course I had to learn a damned good _henge_ to pass!"

Jiraiya felt another pang of guilt hit him. "Naruto," the blond groaned and turned back around, "While you're gone, I'll send a message to Tsunade about telling you about your parents." Naruto felt a grin tug at his mouth, "I don't know what she'll say, but its worth a shot."

Naruto grinned, "Thanks, Pervy Sa - "

"Would you stop calling me that!?" Jiraiya roared.

"When Tayuya-chan stops calling me Shithead," Naruto quipped, earning a smack from said girl.

"Stop calling me Tayuy-chan!" She snapped, and poked him in the chest, "And you _are_ a shithead, so get used to it!"

Naruto growled and turned back toward the direction of the river, "Want me to drown you?"

"Just try it," Tayuya sneered, "You'll be sleepin' with the fuckin' fish before me!"

"Get going," Jiraiya groaned, "Both of you!"

"Hai, hai." Both teens sighed as Naruto continued on, making Jiraiya role his eyes. "Unbelievable," he smirked, "They're just as rambunctious as Minato and Kushina were...wonder how Tsunade's gonna take this?" He looked up at the clouds for a moment, scratching his cheek absently, "If this is your way of giving the kid a bit of a push, then I gotta say, it's gonna be one hell of a ride." He said, then took a blank scroll from his vest, and a small pen from his pocket and began writing.

=x=

Meanwhile, Naruto had made it to the river, which was flowing a little fast for his taste. "Well, pick a spot and I'll wait behind a rock or something." Naruto sighed to the girl in his arms. Tayuya was hard pressed to do so. The river was very intimidating to a girl whose legs were, for the moment, as useless as a newborn's.

The river wasn't very fast, but the current would be more than strong enough to carry her off if she were caught. "Over there," Tayuya pointed out a small pool that was surrounded by rocks, and well out of the current. Naruto nodded and brought her over to the edge.

"You..." Naruto blushed as he set her down, "Don't need any help, right?"

Tayuya glared at him, "You really are a little perv, aren't ya?"

Naruto growled, "I'll take that as a _no-thank-you_." He got up from his crouch and found a big boulder to hop behind, "Scream if you need anything!"

Tayuya glared after him, making sure that he was well out of sight before even kicking off her ruined sandles. Her kimono top was next, leaving her in a black sports bra that she favored over the wired monstrosities that some kunoichi her age wore for the sake of style, while she merely cared about comfort. Next went her cap, also ruined somehow, ripped in a fair few places.

She was left now in the bra and black shorts, debating whether or not to keep them on while she bathed, but knew it would be uncomfortable to move around in wet clothes...though they could use washing. "Fuck it," she sighed and peeled off the remaining clothes. Carefully she dipped her toes into the water, yelping at the coldness of the river, then sighed as she slid in, letting her body float for a short while so she could move her legs about for the first time in days.

They were stiff as boards, so to speak, but she felt far less pain now that she thought about it. After a moment, the water warmed up to her body, and she felt a genuine smile grace her lips. It felt wonderful.

Naruto was trying to keep his mind on other things besides the naked girl bathing just behind him. _She was so lite, _he thought as he remembered taking her in his arms, then shook his head, _No, bad idea, she's a hot Oto-nin, not a...argh, what the hell's wrong with me?! _

A dark chuckle sounded through his mind, _**Sounds to me like spring time has come early for you, Runt.**_The Kyuubi laughed, _**As I said, she is more likable than that teammate of your's. Why not try to make her yours?**_

Naruto blushed, _Make her mine? What the hell are you talking about, Baka Fox!? _

_**Just what I said, Runt,**_the fox chuckled again, **_she is very pleasing to look at, for a ningen. And you must admit that you do find her attractive. Don't try to deny it, because I heard you think of her as 'hot' only moments ago. In the terms of the ningen, I believe that this means you find her highly attractive._**_  
><em>

_Doesn't matter, _Naruto grumbled at the fox, _I like Sakur- _

_**Please!**_The fox rumbled in agitation, _**That lump of a girl had done nothing to warrant your affections. For as long as I've paid attention, she's been lusting after that Uchiha brat! She's not the most attractive female in your village either. She has no breasts to speak of. How would she produce milk for you kitlings should you mate?** _This got an embarrassed blush from the blond._ **And that's not the only thing that flat about her! That blond vixen was right to cal her billboard!** _

_Alright, that's enough! _Naruto snapped at the fox in defense of his friend/crush, _So she's not perfect, big deal! That doesn't mean you get t go off on her like - __  
><em>

_**Like she's done to you almost every day since you teamed up with those two!**_The fox snapped, baring any argument, **_Listen to me, Kit. I have seen ningen live and die for ten centuries. I can see true affections with but a glance. And let me tell you that that girl only cared for you as a friend, teammate, or brother, nothing more than that! Hell, her blonde friend had more affection for you than she did! And she was just as bad about chasing after the Uchiha!_ **By now, Naruto's ears were ringing like a gong had been struck right beside his head.

_Sorry, I didn't know it bothered you that much! _Naruto whimpered, _Jeez, Kyuubi, I know you're right, but don't you think she could change and learn to like me instead? _

_**Hmm, let me think about that...NO!** _Again, Naruto's ears rang with the tremendous roar that the Kyuubi let out. **_Listen, I'll give you a little insight._**The fox said, **_Go ahead and have a peek at the red vixen - _**

_What?! She'd murder me!_

_**Then don't let her see you.**_The Kyuubi said simply, **_And in return, I'll...teach you one of the jutsu I became fond of in my younger_ _days_.** Naruto perked up at this. The Kyuubi was willing to teach him a jutsu? Him? His jailer? The Kyuubi sighed, _**Yes, dammit, now do as I say, and I promise you won't regret it!** _Naruto had mixed feelings about what he was about to do...but to learn a jutsu from a Tailed Beast? How could he refuse?_  
><em>

Naruto slowly turned and crouched low, casting the smallest glances around the boulder as he heard splashing noises. He nearly lost it right there. Tayuya, though the water was well past her hips, was standing upright, splashing herself and scrubbing her arms gently. Her hair, wet as it was, clung to her neck and back, and part of to her chest. There was no denying the Kyuubi's claims now. Tayuya was _beautiful_...more so than he thought of Sakura. From the graceful curve of her neck and shoulder down to the sweet curve of her hips. He hadn't been able to tell from the baggy clothing she had worn, but she had the kind a figure that Sakura envied the most. And though her breasts weren't large, they were certainly fuller than Sakura's, but still just barely past being bumps under her clothing.

_Kami..._

**_Heh, you're welcome, Kit._ **The fox said smugly as Naruto slowly retreated back to the safety of the rock, red as the fox's fur...or Tayuya's hair.

_How the hell am I supposed to look her in the face after that? _Naruto wondered silently, _This jutsu better be worth it, Kyuubi, because if she finds out - _

"Hey, Shithead!" Tayuya yelled, startling the blond, "Come pick me up!"

"C-coming!" Naruto stammered, hurriedly getting to his feet. Tayuya had dressed, sort of as she was only in her shorts and sports bra, the rest of her clothes lying in a forgotten heap, a fine thing for Naruto, since it looked like a shirt, but he couldn't fight off the blush on his face. A fact that the red-head noticed as Naruto collected her.

"You better not have peeked," she growled as she wrapped her arms around his neck for supports.

"I didn't," he said a little too quickly, and Tayuya smirked playfully.

"So, you mean to say that you passed up seeing the cute little mole on my chest?" She teased lightly, curling her fingers through his hair, making the poor blond shiver. "You shouldn't have...it's shaped like a little star."

"But I didn't seeing anything like - "

"AHA!"

"Oh shi - " BAM.

The Kyuubi was laughing himself sick for that last bit. Poor Naruto wouldn't be walking straight for a while...at least until the fox took a little pity on him. He was a male, after all.

=x=

"What the heck happened to you?" Jiraiya asked as soon as Naruto came into sight, Tayuya transferred to his back for...certain reasons, limping. Tayuya wore a small satisfied smirk on her face as she sat up straight on his back, her arms crossed. It didn't take a genius to realize what had happened...especially when one was a super pervert. "He peeked, didn't he?"

Tayuya said nothing, and directed Naruto over to her bed roll. Naruto groaned and let her down easily before limping over to his own bed. Jiraiya felt his lip twitching, "Was it worth it?"

Naruto looked at his sensei for a moment before gaining a smug, goofy grin, "Yup."

Jiraiya took one look at the boy's grin, and the sour look Tayuya now had on her face and threw back his head, laughing like a monkey.

"Fuckin' pervert," Tayuya muttered with her cheeks puffed out cutely. "He's lucky I couldn't kick too hard."

=x=

When night came and the three turned in for the evening, Naruto sighed and rolled over onto his back, _Well, you happy now? _

_**Very.**_The Kyuubi answered with a dark chuckle, _**Now I believe I owe you something.**_**  
><strong>

_Yeah, you do. _Naruto chuckled, _I didn't get kicked in the nards just for a peek, you know. _

_**Oh? IN that case, maybe you would like to see her like that again? I have the memory stored if you'd - **_

_Just the jutsu, please! _Naruto yelped.

_**Pfft, you're no fun.** _The fox snorted, _**But alright. The technique I have for you is right up your alley. It's called Bunshin Daibakuha.**_

* * *

><p><strong><em>The training from hell begins. Not only has Naruto been given the chance to learn about his clan's Taijutsu, but the Kyuubi had offered him one of his own. And Tayuya is well on her way to recovering, meaning our poor blond is in for a lot of aggravation some time soon.<em>**

**_Jutsu List:_**

**_Ryuu no Mai: Dancing Dragon: B-rank_****_ An Uzumaki Taijutsu/Kenjutsu form that uses quick movements of the legs, and arms to whip around, slashing, or knocking opponents techniques calls for the user to be exceedingly quick in foot work, and limber, capable of stretching our or bending at different angles at will._**

**_Bushin Daibakuha: Clone Great Explosion: A-rank The user over charges a shadow clone with chakra later used to detonate when the target is within close range. _**

**_Don't forget to review!_**


	3. Chapter 3

_**3: Response**_

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><p>Tsunade looked down at the scroll that had been delivered to her via Jiraiya's message toad that morning. A slight twitch in her eyebrow was the only thing the hidden Anbu in the room had to go on to how annoyed she was. "He can't be serious!" The Senju growled under her breath. At that moment, a young rosette entered the room, her arms laden with paperwork.<p>

"Good morning, Shishiou," Sakura chirped happily, "I have the monthly clan reports. Hiashi-san is asking for funding for expansion on the clan compound again, and the Akamichi are - "

Tsunade sighed, "Sakura, please, not now. I've got something else to worry about."

Sakura regarded her sensei curiously, "Is something wrong?"

"You could say that," Tsunade sighed again, "Jiraiya picked up a former Oto kunoichi, and now he's asking me to take her as a shinobi of Konoha!"

Sakura was surprised, "Was it one of the people that attacked the retrieval team?"

"Yes," the blonde growled, "How Jiraiya can openly trust her is beyond me!"

The girl nodded, "I suppose he's just like Naruto in that respect...he likes seeing good in people."

Tsunade scoffed, "That's the thing!" She laughed, "They completely hate each other, according to this!" She flopped the scroll onto her desk, "From the few things he's put in about Naruto, the two don't get along at all, and fight like an old married couple!"

Sakura could suppress a giggle at this, "That sounds a little about how he and Sasuke-kun used to be...before Orochimaru..." She hung her head sadly.

"I know," Tsunade said, thinking of the other half of the message, "But it sounds as if Naruto's training is off to a good start. Jiraiya's fixing that poor Taijutsu style of his and turning him into a real fighter."

Sakura gave her sensei a small look, "Sorry, Tsunade-sama, but you...don't really sound all that excited."

Tsunade nodded, "It's just something unpleasant that I have to deal with later. You shouldn't concern yourself with Hokage business...unless you'd like to take over for a while?" Tsunade said with a small smirk.

Sakura giggled, "No thanks, all this paper work would give me grey hairs!"

A vein throbbed on Tsunade's forehead, "What does that mean?"

"It means I'm late for a lunch date!" Sakura squeaked and darted out the door.

"Get back here, Sakura!" Tsunade roared after her, "You've still got the reports!"

=|With Naruto|=

"Fuck _meeeeeeeeeeee_!" Tayuya's pained voice shrieked across the area as Jiraiya gently hoisted her high off the ground right up next to Naruto. "My fuckin' legs are gonna fall off, you old sack of shit!"

"Suck it up," Naruto grinned from where he was hanging, "And shut the fu - "

"I will _so_ knock you out of this fuckin' tree, Shithead!" Tayuya snapped at the blond as she came up to his level.

Down below, Jiraiya had finished tying the rope off, "Knock off the yammering," he called up to the pair, "It's been three days, Tayuya-chan, so your legs should be able to handle this kinda strain - "

"Should be?" Tayuya snapped down at him.

" - besides, I'm taking it easier on you than I am on him," he jerked his thumb at the suspended blond, "The rock I tied to you is smaller than his."

Tayuya felt her eye twitching, "Great," she said sarcastically, "I feel so fucking _special_ right now that I'm about to fucking cry!"

"Enough chitchat!" Jiraiya yelled, "Two hundred from you, Gaki, and only a hundred from you Tayuya-chan -"

"STOP CALLIING ME TAYUYA-CHAN!" Tayuya howled.

Naruto just snickered at the girl's misery. Honestly she looked ready to murder his sensei at this point. Sure her legs were better at this point, and she had even managed to walk a few steps, only for Jiraiya to put her right beside the blond in hi torturous training exercise while the rest of Naruto's clones moved through the Ryuu no Mai katas.

"No use complaining about it, Tayuya-san," Naruto sighed as he started his routine, "he won't change his mind once he's gotten us up here." He grinned as Tayuya glared at him, trying to hoist herself up for the first pull-up. "Don't worry, if it gets too hard or painful, let me know and I'll call one of my clones over to help."

Tayuya nearly let herself drop at that, "What the hell? When did you do a head-case one-eighty?!"

"What d'ya mean?" Naruto stopped and looked at her curiously.

"I fuckin' mean don't you hate me?" She snapped, "I mean you couldn't stand me two days ago, so what the fuck changed?" She asked, then grimaced, "Seeing me naked didn't do that did it?"

"No," Naruto growled out on a blush, and shook his head, "Look, I get over things fast. If you're gonna help me knock the shit outta that Hebi-teme, then you're alright in my books." He started up again, much easier than he'd been able to do so in the past. He was getting stronger by the day thanks to the training, hellish as it was, he couldn't fault the results, and his mood was picking up because he was expecting Tsunade's reply to Jiraiya's request any day now. Hopefully she would let him know who his parents were.

Tayuya just gave him a slight look, "Yeah, right ya perv. Like you aren't barking to get another fuckin' peek."

Naruto just smirked, "Hey, a guy can dream, can't he?" He laughed as Tayuya tried to swing at him and bump in to him.

"You shithead," Tayuya growled at him, "You're lucky I'm tied up like a fucking turkey right now or else I'd pummel you."

Naruto's smirk grew into a full blown grin, "Heheh, I know a few people that would pay good money to get tied up like this."

Tayuya deadpanned at him, "Sicko."

"What? I'm serious!" Naruto laughed, "I bet anything that Pervy Sage wouldn't mind ei - " YANK "_YARGH_!"

"I heard that you little brat!" Jiraiya yelled as he yanked on Naruto's rope, "And I'll have you know that I've never allowed something like that to happen in any of my exploits!"

"Che, yeah right," Naruto muttered.

"What was that?" Jiraiya growled up at him, reaching for the rope again.

"Nothing!" Naruto yelped, "Absolutely nothing!" Then an idea popped into his head, and the blond grinned deviously, "Hey! Spar with me!"

"What?" Tayuya and Jiraiya said in surprise, the latter nearly laughing, "Come on, Brat, you're no where near ready to take me on yet!"

Naruto grinned, "Who said anything about beating you?" He asked, "Put it this way, if I can land a hit on you, then we move out to Kiri today, no training"

Jiraiya cocked an eyebrow at him, "And if you can't?"

Naruto thought about that for a minute, then the grin returned, "I'll have a clone use _that_ jutsu you love so much..._all day._"

"SOLD!" Jiraiya crowed excitedly, "Get down here so I can kick your ass, Gaki! And bring on that jutsu from Kami!" Tayuya didn't have the slightest clue what the pair was going on about, but was grateful when Naruto freed himself and unbound her legs, too, then dropped to the ground, dispelling his clones. As she freed her hands, though, she slipped.

Lucky for her Naruto was watching her, and reached out to catch her. She landed in his arms easily enough, cradled against his chest. "You okay, Tayuya-san?"

Tayuya looked up at him with a glare, which melted away as soon as she saw real concern in those damnably blue eyes of his. She, in her fourteen years, had never seen _anyone_ with eyes like his. "Y-yeah...thanks for the save, Shithead-k-kun." She immediately wanted to bite off her tongue when his brow shot up in surprise at her the term.

"Hey!" Jiraiya yelled, "We gonna fight, or what?!"

Naruto huffed, and gently set the girl on her feet, "Way to ruin the moment, Pervy Sage." He grumbled. Tayuya simply blushed and sat under the tree as the blond made his way toward the Sannin, looking ready for murder...or an insane prank.

Naruto crossed his fingers in front of him, "_Kage Bushin no Jutsu_!" Five clones appeared around him in a circle each in a varying stance of the _Ryuu no Mai,_ "Okay, you guys know the plan?"

"Right!" The five clones chorused, moving swiftly to circle around the Sannin.

Jiraiya grinned, "Just five clones?" He chuckled, "You'll have to do better than this, Gaki!"

Naruto, all of him, just grinned, "Now!"

"Oiroke no Jutsu!" Five puffs of smoke erupted around the Sannin for a moment until...

"Ah?" Tayuya arched an eyebrow as she took in the seen, no longer feeling any sort of kindness toward the blond as his clones took the form of five shapely women, each one looking the same as the other; blonde, busty and naked. "Oh you have got to be fucking shiting me!" She roared, "No way is Jiisan gonna fall for - "

"LADIES!" Jiraiya howled lecherously, "COME TO JIRAIYAAAAAA!" Tayuya face-faulted at this and struggled to get back up just as the blonde beauties glomped him...a big mistake as it turned out.

"Now, girls!" Naruto yelled, "But don't kill him!"

The girls grinned evilly, "_Bushin Daibakuha_!"

"Huh?" Jiraiya gulped as the clone vixens started to glow, "Oh shi - " BOOM. "YEEEEHOOOOOO!" Naruto covered his eyes against the sun as he watched Jiraiya's ascent, and, eventually, his descent.

"Nice air time," Naruto admitted to himself, "Not bad at all...this is gonna make for some wicked pranks when I get back home!"

Tayuya, stunned by the preformed jutsu, could only stare as Jiraiya came crashing back to earth, landing in a crater slightly larger than he was. "That...was...fucking awesome!" Tayuya yelled, pumping the air with her fists. "Oi, Shithead! You are so teaching me that jutsu!"

Jiraiya heard this as he pulled himself out of the ground, and paled, "Just what I need...another b-bombs-shell...and no the good kind." he groaned before sliding back down into the hole he had made.

=|Konoha, Hokage's Office|=

"Is there a reason as to why you've called us in here?" Homura asked as he, Koharu, and Danzo stood in the Hokage's office, surrounded, also, by the seven shinobi council members, consisting of the clan heads, or acting representatives.

Tsunade was not particularly happy to see the three civilian council members, least of all Danzo. Though he was a member of a shinobi clan, he was the last of his family, so acted as part of the civilian councilmen. To Tsunade, the man gave off the coldest Ki she had ever felt, even when her grandfather had associated himself with Uchiha Madara.

"Yeah, what was the reason I had to drag myself up here?" Shikaku Nara sighed lazily before getting nudged by Choza Akamichi.

Tsunade sighed, seeing no reason to drag this out, "I've called you in here for one purpose" she said, drawing all the attention, "Uzumaki Naruto has been made aware of his relation to the Uzumaki clan of Uzushiogakure."

"He's what - ?" Koharu all but screeched.

"Who would do that?!" Homura demanded, "That is a clear violation of the Sandiame's law!"

Tsunade pounded her desk for silence, "No law has been broken." She snapped, "As you already know, thanks to Mizuki, Naruto already knows about the Kyuubi sealed away inside of him, but the law only pertains to Naruto's father. His family name of Uzumaki was, for some odd reason, " she looked at the civilian members, "struck from the educational ciriculum. As you know, I myself am one quarter Uzumaki on my grandmother's side, and I have never forgotten the aid their clan gave us in the early days."

"But the boy's father - " Danzo started.

"Will not be mentioned," she said, "Naruto is only curious about his mother and her clan. Which I find to be very natural for a boy that has gone his whole life without so much as a friendly face in his life outside this office," again she glared at the three civilians. "What I propose is that Naruto be made aware of his mother, and, at a later date when he's more prepared, be informed of his father when he returns to the village."

"What brought all this up, anyway?" Asuma Sarutobi asked with a raise of his hand, "I thought he was going to be made aware of this once he came of proper age. Civilian age, that is."

Koharu grumbled, "Ridiculous shinobi and their age rules."

Tsume gave the older woman a snarl of a sneer, "Are you saying that even if a gennin at twelve is old enough to kill if commanded, he or she can't have a drink when he needs it?"

"As I said, idiotic!" Koharu snapped at the woman, "How many gennin do you think have walked into bars just because they're allowed to since they're shinobi!"

"Drinking age aside!" Tsunade interrupted the pair before the argument could go any further, "Naruto was to be told when he turned sixteen, when he returned to the village in the next three years, and offered to take the mantle of Uzumaki clan head since he's a half-blood, more so than myself, but since he's begun his training, Jiraiya had decided to teach him the ways of the Uzumaki fighting styles."

Homura raised his eyebrows, "That is surprising. I was unaware that Jiraiya-sama knew Uzumaki techniques."

Tsunade sighed, "Being part Uzumaki myself, I gave him permission to go to the island and see if he could dig anything up that could be of use to the village." She explained, "As it turns out, he found several scrolls of Uzumaki styled jutsu, including a special Kinjutsu among their them that he intended for Naruto at some point in time when he assumed the mantle."

"Interesting," Danzo intoned, and the blonde Hokage could almost see him licking his chops at the thought of another Kinjutsu to add to the Konoha vault. "What jutsu was it?"

"That," Tsunade smirked at the old war hawk, "is none of anyone's business except my own, and Uzumaki Naruto, we two being the last of very few Uzumaki left in the world. Should Naruto deem anyone worthy to share the technique with, they should consider themselves lucky beyond belief." Danzo was visibly perturbed, but said nothing, "Now, back to my original point. Uzumaki Naruto will be told of his mother, but not his father until his return...agreed?"

Tsume spoke for the shinobi, and said, "He should have been told the minute he was old enough to understand such things!" The Inuzuka clan head snarled, "Keeping this from him only put him at the villagers' mercy for thirteen years, and stunted the growth of a splendid shinobi!"

"Here, here," Choza smirked, "The boy deserves a bit of happiness after all this. The knowing of his mother would surely give him that!"

"I must caution this," Koharu said, "The boy's been shown to have an unstable personality at times. If he finds out, he may - "

Tsunade glared at the woman fiercely, silencing her, "You have no power over my shinobi council. You say that I called you here, but in fact you simply heard that I had called a meeting of the shinobi clans, and decided to poke your long noses into it. You elected me Hokage, so now you will abide by my decisions after my council has been heard. If I thought that he couldn't handle it, none of you would be here, as it stands, I simply wanted to here the opinions of the clans as they all know the origins of the boy, and have been keeping quiet for years."

Surprisingly, Hiashi Hyuuga spoke up next, "As unpredictable as the boy's temper may be, he has shown good judgement in situations." The man said, "Let us not forget that it was he who defeated the Ichibi no Jincuuriki, and he has a summoning contract with the toads."

Tsunade smirked, "That brings up a fairly good point, Hyuuga-dono," she said, drawing all eyes back to her, "As I've looked back over his achievements, those being twenty-six D-rank, fifteen C-rank, and three A-ranks - "

"Three?" Danzo asked.

"His mission to Nami no Kuni was upgraded to A," Tsunade explained, "Plus the mission to Yuki, and the kingdom of the Crescent Moon islands. He's acheived just as much as his father had at his age."

"Not quite," Homura chuckled, "Remember the S-rank mission Minato did when he was still a genin?" He questioned Koharu, who nodded grudgingly.

"And let us not forget, also that he faced A-rank shinobi each time and defeated them," Tsunade said, "What I would like to do, to lessen the sting for him, is promote him to chunin. Even so long after the chunin exams, he's grown considerably. He deserves the promotion twice over in my opinion."

"Agreed," said the gathered shinobi.

"Thank you," Tsunade said kindly, "You're support is greatly appreciated. I dismiss this meeting, and thank you all for attending on such short notice."

=|With Naruto|=

_**Pervert,**_the Kyuubi taunted jeeringly, **_My container is a pervert! _**

_Could you shut up for once? _Naruto snapped, _It's not like she can walk long distances yet! _

_**So you're telling me that you're not enjoying those lovely little orbs pressing against your back? **_

_..._Naruto remained silent as he found it difficult to focus for two reasons. One being the fact that Tayuya was on his back, piggyback, and leaning against him, which inadvertedly pressed her breasts against her shoulders, and the second being that he kept seeing flashes of her bathing running through his mind. Tayuya, for her part, didn't mind a bit as she was dozing contentedly against him, her arms dangling around his chest.

The girl had stubbornly tried to walk after Jiraiya had recovered enough to hold up his end of the bargain, and move on to Kiri. Jiriaya had started leading the way after they packed up, but as they progressed, Tayuya had gotten further and further behind until she had hit her knees. Naruto had seen this and wordlessly offered her the ride to which equally wordlessly accepted.

The whole thing had amused their sensei to know end until Naruto told him to back off unless he wanted another demonstration of his exploding clones.

_That jutsu you showed me worked really well, by the way. _Naruto commented, _Where did you learn it._

**_I didn't learn it, Runt. Bijuu can only preform the base elements they represent. Clones are out of the question. I remember seeing an Uchiha using this jutsu, and thought it would...amuse you since you use clones so much for fighting._**

_This is an Uchiha jutsu? _Naruto asked.

**_Yes, and as it happens, only one ever used it...Uchiha Itachi. _**

_Whoa! You mean this is one of his jutsu?! _

_**That is**_**_ correct_,** the fox grumbled, _**Now you'd better keep up with the pervert. Talking to me is making you fall behind!** _As if on cue, Jiraiya looked back over his shoulder and yelled, "Oi, Gaki, get a move on! We're almost to Kirigakure!"

"Already?" Naruto called back softly.

"It's closest to the village," Jiraiya said, "How's Tayuya-chan?"

"Don'...call...me...zat..." Tayuya slurred sleepily, making Naruto chuckle.

"How far out are we?" Naruto asked.

"About another twelve hours if we keep this pace," Jiraiya said, looking back at the pair, "But it looks like we should stop soon." He looked at the receding sun, "It's getting late, and Tayuya-chan needs more rest. It was foolish of me to think she could start those exercises so soon."

"Damn right it was," Naruto grumbled, looking at the girl's peaceful face, _She's too damned cute when she sleeps. _He thought as she rested her head against his shoulder. It was a wonder to him how she'd managed to walk as far as she had. When Jiraiya had checked her injuries, her legs were swollen badly, and the old sage had been angry that she hadn't said anything.

"I'm not some fuckin' crybaby," she had said, "So don't treat me like I'm make of some shitty piece of glass!"

That had ended the argument.

Jiraiya spotted a group of trees off to the side of the road, "W'll make camp here tonight, Naruto. Even you have to be getting tired by now."

"Sorta," the blond said, adjusting the girl on his back, even though he could have gone for a few more hours. He followed Jiraiya off the road and into the small group of trees where the old man already had a roll out for Tayuya and was getting started on a fire pit. Naruto tried to lay her down on her mat, but the girl, in her sleep, refused to let go. "Hey, come on, let go already!" Naruto complained quietly as he tried to pry her off.

"Nu-uh," mumbled Tayuya, "too warm."

Jiraiya snickered perversely at this, "Looks like you're not going anywhere tonight, Gaki, you lucky devil, you!"

Naruto paled, "This is not happening!" He hissed, "Get her off me!"

"Nope, I wanna see how this turns out!" Jiraiya laughed quietly.

Naruto growled, but Tayuya had a strong grip on him for such slender arms, and she showed no signs of waking up. _**Just give up.** _The Kyuubi sighed, smirking at his container's misfortune, _**You know there's no way out of this unless you wake her.** _

Naruto just sighed, resigning himself to his fate. _I'm so gonna regret this in the morning. _

_**Probably.**_Kyuubi snickered, leaving Naruto to settle in for the night with Tayuya latched onto him. Jiraiya watched on in amusement as Naruto was soon fast asleep next to the young red-heard snuggled into his shoulder.

"They make a cozy two-some," he chuckled, then looked down at he small slug that had attached herself to his robe, "Alright, Katsuyu, what did Hime say?"

Katsuyu, instead of answering, increased her size and spat out a scroll, "Her reply is in there. I was to return as soon as I gave it to you, Jiraiya-sama...just know that she was not happy about the girl."

"Understandable," Jiraiya nodded, accepting the scroll. "Thank you, and give my regards to Hime."

"I will," Katsuyu nodded, "Look after the little ones." She said before dispelling away.

Jiraiya sighed and rolled out the scroll.

_"Jiraiya, I hope this message finds you well, and out of trouble. In answer to your earlier request, I will allow you to tell Naruto about his mother, but not Minato, at least not yet. And as for the girl, that is your responsibility if she prove untrustworthy. Do not let her hurt Naruto in any way shape or form or I will make you regret it. The clans have convened and we have come to the decision to promote Naruto to chunin rank for his acts in the past few months despite Sasuke's disappearance, and I would like to have you continue missions while training. My hope is that he will have earned the jonin promotion before your return. Also, sealed in this scroll is the chunin flak vest and equipment for Naruto, and also a few artticals of clothing for the girl as well as a Hitai-ate, if she accepts it. be sure to point out that she technically has no place to go if she resists. One more thing, Jiraiya, it would be best if you taught Naruto the Uzumaki Kinjutsu and destroyed the scroll. Danzo has shown an unhealthy interest in it from the moment I let slip that you found it. On that note, I will leave you, and contact you in a few more days with a mission for the three of you. Remember, do not let that girl fool you!"_

Jiraiya grumbled, "I told you, Tsunade, her name is Tayuya," he said, and rolled the scroll back up, leaving the contents for tomorrow. He then reached into his vest and pulled out a smaller, red scroll with the orange Uzumaki swirl on it, the kanji for forbidden brushed onto it. "I hope whatever's in this scroll isn't too much for the kid to handle."

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><p><em><strong>Shorter, I know, but I have to add a little suspense, don't I? <strong>_

_**Don't forget to review!**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**4: Withdrawal**_

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><p>Naruto was expecting, for the most part, to be woken up by Tayuya's angry fists, yet he wasn't. he was, once again, awakened by Tayuya's whimpering. Naruto's eyes shot open the moment he heard a pained gasp, and found Tayuya's face flushed with fever and covered in sweat. "Hey!" Naruto shouted, rousing his sensei, who jolted up.<p>

"Gaki, don't spook me like...what the hell?!" Jiraiya yelled when he saw Tayuya. Naruto moved away and let the girl rest on her back. Her eyes opened slowly, blood-shot, and red from the fever.

"What's going on with her?!" Naruto snapped, "She was fine last night!"

Jiraiya looked her over, checking her heart rate, pulse, temperature, and did not like what he found, "This is withdrawal syndrome."

"What?" Naruto asked, "What's that? Some kinda illness?"

Jiraiya shook his head, "No, this is something that happens when someone has used drugs for a long time, and suddenly stops taking them." He explained, "the body builds up a need for the drug, whatever it may be, and if the body doesn't get it, this happens. It's not often fatal, but it'll be rough for her. I can't imagine we'll be going anywhere today with her like this."

"So wait," Naruto growled, "You mean we just sit here and do nothing for her?!"

"All we can do is make her comfortable, and wait for it to pass," the Sannin said, "There's really no way to ease her suffering from this, not even pain killers...they'd probably make it worse." Jiraiya set about making the girl more comfortable on her mat, making sure that she had an extra blanket, the heat from the fever making her sweat profusely, meaning her body would soon chill.

Naruto felt useless as he watched, wanting to do something to help her, but he didn't know what. Jiraiya sighed as he finished, and reached into his robe, "Here, if you're going to worry about it that much, then this will take your mind off of her for a little while," he produced a small red scroll from his pocket, "This is something I've been holding for you for some time now."

He tossed the scroll to the blond, who caught it with ease, noticing the orange swirl crest on the center, "I've seen this on the Jonnin flak jackets."

"It's the family crest of the Uzumaki clan," Jiraiya explained, "We wear it as a sign of respect to the clan we once held in the highest respects, and as family." The blond smiled, "That scroll contains secret upon secrets from your clan. What I want you to do is begin to learn from that scroll, Ninjutsui, Fuinjutsu, Kinjutsu, all the scroll has to offer, for this is your birth right as the last Uzumaki, Naruto. When we returned to the village, you would have been told of your heritage...all of it, your father, mother, clan, everything, but as it stands, I've told you of your mother and clan. So now you have to do what is only right by your clan."

Naruto looked up sharply, "And that is what?"

"To take the mantle as the clan leader, and learn your clan techniques to pass down for future generations," Jiraiya clarified as he produced a second scroll, "And Tsunade has a little surprise for you," he unfurled the scroll, and out popped a flak jacket, and a package wrapped with string, "She's given a field promotion to Chunin."

"What?!" Naruto jumped up in shock, catching the jacket as Jiraiya tossed it to him. Naruto's smile was almost as bright as his jumpsuit. "You mean I'm finally a Chunin?! For real?!"

Jiraiya just grinned at the blond while he tried the jacket on, and started ripping into the parcel, spilling out a small tanto just right for the boy's hands, a new set of shurriken and kunai, and a small wooden box with the word chakra etched into the wood. Jiraiya smiled and picked the item up.

"Now this is what I was hoping for!" He popped the box open, revealing a stack of paper inside no bigger than a playing card, "This is chakra paper, with this, we can find out what element I should start training you in!"

Naruto huffed, "We can worry about that later," he said, strapping the new blade to his back as he'd seen most Jonnin do, "We should look after Tayuya-san until this passes." Jiraiya sighed and gave a nod to the boy, seeing he wasn't about to budge on the subject.

"That's fine, but at least have a look at that scroll I gave you? You might learn something useful," he suggested, to which Naruto grudgingly nodded. "Good, now go study, if you've got any questions, I'll be here with Tayuya."

Naruto grumbled something unintelligible, and slouched off with the scroll in hand. Jiraiya watched him until he was out of sight, then turned to look down at the stricken girl with a slight smirk, "He's seriously worried about you...well, well, will little wonders never cease?"

=x=

_She was running. Her feet were bloodied and worn from the stony ground and her lack of sandals. Behind her, the angry shouting of the man rang in her ears as he neared. _

_"It's your fault! All your fault!" He roared, "She died because of you!" _

"No," the girl moaned, "I didn't mean to."

_"You're to blame!" _

"Please, don't hurt me!"

_"You killed your own mother!" _

=x=

Jiraiya nearly fell over when Tayuya started thrashing, mumbling something in her delusions. She threw the blanket off and tried to cover her face and head with her arms, curling herself into a ball as if she were trying to hide from something. Knowing there was little he could do except make sure that she didn't hurt herself. He laid a wet cloth against her face to wipe away the worst of the sweat.

"T-tou-san..." she mumbled with a shiver. Jiraiya sighed, wondering what had happened. What she may be seeing that was tormenting her so.

_Damn you , Orochimaru, _he thought with a growl, _Damn you to the worst punishments the nine circles of hell has in store for your twisted soul. _The girl was starting to grow on him. Her fiery attitude, quick temper, and sharp tongue reminded him greatly of Kushina. So many things were similar to back then. The day he had met Kushina, he remembered that Minato was, for the first time since he'd taken the boy on as a Genin, to be truly happy. And it was the first time he had seen the boy laugh so much.

The first thing Jiraiya had done upon seeing the two together was ask Minato if he'd finally taken his advice and gotten himself a girlfriend. And that had resulted in a painful memory. The dear, sweet little firecracker had flown into one of her soon to be famous rages, and pummeled both him, and, for reasons unknown then, Minato. From then on, it had been a wild ride watching the two fall further in love to that faithful night when Kushina was taken by Kumo. By then, Minato was a Jonin, and well on his way to being the village's greatest shinobi. Jiraiya couldn't have been prouder.

Yes, Tayuya had the same personality as Kushina, that was certain. Except, Jiraiya chuckled at the memory, Kushina's verbal tic that Naruto had often displayed in excitement.

Naruto, meanwhile, had found himself a tree to sit under while he debated looking at the scroll. Sure, the idea of learning the techniques of his clan was exciting, but also daunting. He was just like Sasuke in a way. The last of his clan. But there was a difference. He wasn't going to let that get to him. Sasuke had let it eat away at him until it became his obsession. Killing Itachi. Reviving his clan. Power.

It was beginning to become clear to him. Naruto sighed. He would never be able to keep his promise to Sakura. Not as long as Sasuke was so hellbent on revenge, and gaining poower.

_Those that break the rules are scum, _Kakashi's words echoed through his mind, _But those that abandon their comrades are worse than scum. _It was the first...and only lesson that he remembered being taught under the Jonin. One he took to heart.

_**Thinking about what you've missed, brat?** _The Kyuubi asked.

_You should know, _Naruto sighed back, _can't you hear my thoughts? _

_**Only when you allow it,**_the fox said, _**Now why are you not reading that scroll? I know for a fact that the Uzumaki scrolls would help you greatly.**_Naruto was a little surprised that the fox was interested in the scroll, but not completely. The fox had more than made it clear that he needed to e stronger than he was to be worthy of his power, and not just use it when he was about to die.

Wordlessly, Naruto slipped he band off the scroll and unrolled it. In the center of the paper was a sealing matrix around a blank square the size of a hand. Curious, Naruto touched the space with his fingers, and felt something strike his fingertips, a drop of blood falling onto the square. The drop steamed and melted into the paper. The matrix lit up and swirled around into the Uzumaki spiral, and then into one black spot on the scroll. The spot lit up in an almost blinding white light and Naruto was forced to cover his eyes for a moment.

_"Greetings, young Uzumaki," _Naruto snapped his eyes open at the sound of the voice. In front of him, standing in the light, was a small figure of an elderly man. His hair, what was left of it, was stark white, and he was dressed in violet robes with the Uzumaki swirl evident on his chest, "_I am Aizen. The Shodai Uzukage. Know that only those of Uzumaki blood can access this scroll and its contents. But there is a limit to how much I can teach you." _He explained, "_We of the Uzumaki were of many houses. I have asked my future descends to cattalouge any and all techniques vital to out clan within this scroll so that my consciousness could teach you. However, only those of my line are allowed to learn the most important techniques. Should you not be of my line, then I can not teach you what you need to know as a clan head. _

_"Now, young Uzumaki, prepare yourself. For I am now awakened to my task, and shall give you all the knowledge that I can. I pray that I now teach the new clan head of the Uzumaki. May the Rikuudo Senin guide you to the path of Ninshou." _With that, Naruto's mind exploded as the seal roared to life once more. Red strands shot from the scroll, and bore into his body, filling him with all the the scroll had.

=|Inside Naruto's Mind|=

Naruto felt sick. Sicker than he had ever felt, and he never got sick.

"**You are such a weakling,**" said the rumbling voice of the Kyuubi, "**To think that you would pass the test of the Maelstrom. I underestimated you, Brat.**"

Naruto whipped around saw that he was back inside the seal, with the fox glaring down at him as usual, though now there seemed to be one more guest. Aizen was chuckling at the boy. "Surprised to see me, eh, Gaki?"

"You?!" Naruto yelped, "What are you doing in my head?!"

Aizen smiled serenely, "I'm here because, as my scroll fills you with the knowledge of our clan, I am here for but a few moments to teach you personally." He said, watching the boy's eyes go wide, "As you may guess, this means that you and I are directly related somewhere along the lines, though I can see that you are not full-blooded." He chuckled again, "But, I can sense that you are indeed an Uzumaki through and through."

"So...I'm related to the Uzukages?" Naruto breathed out in disbelief.

"If you were not," Aizen said, "You and I would not be here. Now, shall we begin?"

"But how are you gonna teach me?" Naruto asked, "I know Kage Bushins are useful that way, but - "

"Oh, misunderstand," Aizen smiled, "I will be doing to you in here as I did to you on the outside, but these techniques are completely different than what your body is learning now. With this knowledge, you could easily rebuild the clan some day should you have many male heirs. Now, as to how, it will only take a moment, but take heed, you _will_ need to practice."

The fox chuckled darkly behind the two Ningen. "**Oh this is going to be deliciously painful.**" Naruto gulped as Aizen sighed and nodded in agreement.

"Well," Aizen said with a faltering smile, "shall we begin?"

"Uh..."

-|Real World|-

Jiraiya was keeping a watchful eye over the sleeping girl when yet another scream erupted from the forest. The old sage nearly had a coronary when he recognized Naruto's voice. Glancing at Tayuya for a moment, making sure she would be alright, Jiraiya was a red blur across the clearing where Naruto had gone off to.

What he came upon was far more shocking than he had anticipated. Naruto had opened the scroll...and the scroll had a hold of him! A glowing sealing matrix had wrapped itself around Naruto and appeared to entering his body.

"Oh...well...that's a new one..." Jiraiya was at a loss for words. Seeing a seal act like this was far beyond him, but this was an Uzumaki scroll he was looking at. Of course it would be different than normal scrolls. But as his worry began to grow for his young apprentice, the matrix finished with him and Naruto fell to the ground in a heap of orange. "Naruto!" Jiraiya was at his side in a moment. But the blonde was completely knocked out, though he seemed fine, physically, at least.

The sage quickly picked him up and made his way back to camp.

Tayuya woke up just as the sage was making Naruto comfortable on his roll, seeing the blonde she said, "Jiisan...what happened to Shithead-kun?"

Jiraiya gave her a small smile, "Awake, are we? How are you feeling?"

Tayuya gave him a halfhearted smirk, "Trick question, right? I feel like shit." She was still incredibly weak from the withdrawal. It was a wonder that she was even awake yet. Her limbs felt like they were made of stone.

"That's not unusual," he said, "I'm honestly surprised that it hadn't happened sooner. What with the three or four days you spent under that tree and the three you spent with us."

Tayuya just grinned weakly, "I have a strong constitution...I had to have one with the fucked up shit that Orochimaru put me through."

"Well, you can color me impressed," Jiraiya told her, "As to what happened to Naruto, well let's just say that he went overboard with his training and leave it there."

Tayuya looked over at the blonde one more time, seeing that he didn't have a mark on him. If he had been training, then she couldn't tell. "What the hell'd you do to him this time?"

Jiraiya held up his hands, "It wasn't me this time, honest." He chuckled, "Now, you think you could eat something? A little food might bring some strength back?"

Tayuya shook her head. The thought of food at the moment made her stomach churn.

As it happened, Tayuya fell back asleep for the rest of the day, and Naruto didn't wake for the remainder. Jiraiya was beginning to worry about him, but the scroll was meant for him. If Tsunade thought it might hurt the boy, then she never would have given the scroll to him in the first place. But as Jiraiy himself bedded down that evening, Naruto came awake.

Jiraiya was up in a minute to make sure he was all right, "Hey there, gaki, you okay?"

Naruto rubbed his eyes sleepily, then scratched the back of his head, "Ow...I don't want to do that again...remind me to pull something over on Baa-chan when we get back."

Jiraiya was slightly surprised, "That bad, huh?"

"I felt like my head was gonna blow like one of my clones." Naruto clarified, "You try have two sources of information pushing Fuinjutsu into your head like it was a sponge and see how you like it."

"Two sources...pushing knowledge..." Jiraiya whispered, blinking in surprise, "Gaki, what the hell did that scroll do to you? I saw the sealing matrix being absorbed into you, but other than that, I have no idea what happened!"

Naruto tapped his head, "Basically, the Shodaime Uzukage sealed part of his chakra into the scroll so that he could personally teach the next generation of Uzukage, or an Uzumaki that was trying to learn all the jutsu from the clan...but he had more to teach to the heir of the Kage line."

"I see, so you mean to tell me that you're related to the Shodaime Uzukage?" Jiriaya asked to which Naruto nodded, "Well that is something. So what else happened?"

Naruto sighed, "Not sure how to describe it," he said with a bit of uncertainty, "when I met the old man, he said that only the kage heir could access the secondary level of the scroll...That was the worst part. When he pushed all of that into me, it was like getting hit with a thousand Chidori strikes...I guess that's as close to getting hit by lightning as I ever want to get...add to the fact that the damned fox was laughing his ass off while I was screaming and we could call it a party!"

Jiraiya shivered, "That's some dangerous stuff." He said, "Glad I can't look into that scroll myself, much as I'd like to, I wouldn't want to go through what you just did." Naruto nodded, still feeling the phantom pain from the experience. "So, what did you learn?"

Naruto looked up at him, a sudden spark in his eyes, "Everything. All their techniques, all their methods, their ways of life...all of it! I even learned...Oh crap! I need to help Tayuya!"

Naruto jumped up and scrambled over to her, much to Jiraiya's confusion. A moment of watching the boy had his curiosity peeked...that is...until Naruto threw off the blankets covering the girl and lifted up the sports bra.

"Naruto, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Jiraiya roared, reaching out to stop him, "i know she's attractive, but you can't - "

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Pervy Sage!" "Naruto snapped, then bit down on his thumb, letting the blood drip down on the Tayuya exposed skin, "This is a seal!"

Jiraiya, for once, was a little more than shocked. Deciding to give him the benefit of the doubt, he sat back and watched as Naruto began drawing a blood seal on Tayuya's skin. It was something he'd never seen before, and it was amazing to watch a boy that had, until recently, had no experience in seals work in the matrix. It was complex, but, as much as he had seen of Uzumaki sealing techniques, this was simple.

The seal was finished with the Uzumaki crest in the center, right between Tayuya's partially exposed breasts. Naruto, slightly red in the face, wiped his brow and started going through hands seals. "_Uzu no Fuin: Jouka Shinasai_!" The seal glowed red, then turned black as ink as the swirl moved, opening up like a whirlpool. Tayuya groaned in slight discomfort for a moment as the seal did its work, a small plume of steam rising up from it. Jiraiya noticed an immediate change in the girl's complexion. The color was returning to her cheeks, in fact there was more to them. She was beginning to look healthier by the moment.

Finally, the seal started to break apart and was gone in an instant, it's work done.

Naruto was shaking, his hands more so than his body, "Man...Aizen-jiji was right...I need practice..." With that he promptly keeled over backward and lost consciousness again.

Jiraiya was quick to replace Tayuya's clothing, hoping...praying that she didn't wake up. As she didn't, he then sighed and dragged Naruto back to his own bed, "Gaki, if this is any indication of the next three years, then it's going to be a long trip."

=x=

Tayuya woke up feeling...incredible. She stretched up, feeling no soreness in her muscles, or the sickness of the withdrawal that had effected her the previous day. "Shit, I feel great!" She sighed happily, "Who knew a lazy day could do so much good?"

Jiraiya chuckled from where he was sitting around the campfire, "It wasn't bed rest that helped, Tayuya-chan, it was Naruto over there." He said, point toward the still conked out blonde.

Tayuya looked over at him in interest, "What? Shithead did this?" She asked, "How?"

"A seal," Jiraiya smiled, "A very powerful one in fact. From what I saw, it absorbed the toxins in your body, and purified you. I was impressed, and I'm a seal master myself."

Tayuya was stunned, "Why would he do that for me?" She asked, "I mean, we were enemies."

"Doesn't matter," Jiraiya shrugged, "If Naruto likes you, then he'll help you. It's one of his more redeeming qualities." He got up from his crouch, "I'm going to go see if I can catch a few fish from the streams around here...keep an eye on him will you?"

"Yeah, sure," Tayuya muttered as the man wandered off into the woods, her eyes still on the sleeping blonde. She stood up, flexing her legs experimentally, feeling that they seemed much stronger than they had been. Whatever Naruto had done to her, she was healed! "I can't believe this." No one had ever done something like this for her before...hell no one had treated her as a human since she was ten!

She honestly didn't know how to take any of this...were they friends?

Naruto sighed in his sleep, a small, dopey grin gracing his lips. Tayuya gained a smile of her own. "You shithead, just what the hell are you dreaming about?"

x|Konoha: Hokage Tower|x

"Are you sure this is the right mission to send them?" Shizune asked worriedly, "I mean, this man is - "

"Shizune, don't start," Tsunade sighed, "Naruto is a Chunin now, so it's only proper for him to have a mission like this."

Shizune nodded sadly, "I know, but what if - "

"Shizune," Tsunade said, "I know you worry about him, but it's time to face facts. He's a shinobi, and it's time we started treating him like one. Jiraiya certainly won't pull any punches. You should do something to take your mind off this. Go on a date!"

"With who?" Shizune asked, "My jobs keep me busy!"

"How about Iruka?" The blonde grinned, "He seems like a nice guy."

"Oh, but - "

"No buts," Tsunade said, wagging her finger at her apprentice, "Get going, I give you the entire day off. And so help me, if you don't get that man to take you out, I'll have you on the graveyard shift for a month!"

"Aie! Anything but that!"

* * *

><p><em><strong>Ah, poor Shizune : But who could resist that?**_

_**Jutsu List: Uzu no Fuin: Jouka Shinasai/ Purification Seal: A seal draw in blood upon the subject which draws all toxins and impurities from the body into the seal before dissipating. C-rank**_

_**As for why this chapter took so long, well, I was working on my other stories, and in the middle of adopting another :p Well, now that that's out of the way, I will be dividing my time between stories, depending on my spark of insanity.**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Okay, so I just finished catching up with Kishimoto's latest chapter and...WTF! Naruto and Sasuke are friends again, even after tearing each other apart...literally! *sigh* Oh, well, can't really fault him for the drama. At least Sasuke lost his arm. Well, Naruto did, too, but at least he knocked his head back on straight. But I gotta say that, since the last chapter hit, some of my favorite authors writing Naruto fics had just up and stopped...so, I'm going to say something someone else said to me when I started this re-write...FUCK CANNON! **_

_**Happy reading =)**_

_**5: Kirigakure Festival**_

* * *

><p>A mere hour or so outside Kiri, Tayuya, her health blooming, raced ahead of thee group, bursting with energy. "Come on, Shithead-kun, we're almost there!" Tayuya grinned at the lagging blond.<p>

Naruto just growled at her, "Show some gratitude! I just used a seal for the first time, and it helped get you over that damned withdrawal!" He snapped, "It drained me!"

Jiraiya just chuckled, "I could have told you that was gonna happen. A seal like that usually takes one hell of a toll on its user, let alone a rookie." He looked at the blond with a more serious look, "You're just lucky that your clan has so much chakra that they couldn't die of chakra exhaustion if they tried. Or else I'd have to tell Tsunade her favorite punching bag is dead."

"Gee, thanks a lot, Pervy Sage," Naruto quipped, "Like you could use something like that!"

Jiraiya scoffed, "Actually, I could. From what I could see, that was a lower ranked Fuinjutsu, and I could have easily used it, given enough time. You used it out of base instinct after that scroll got through with you. It no wonder you passed out."

"_That_ was low level?" Naruto asked in surprise, "It nearly sucked me dry!"

Jiraiya grinned, "That's what she said."

"PERVY SAGE!"

"Alright, alright," Jiraiya laughed, waving his hands in surrender, "But you impressed me last night. Even if it was low on the totem pole, that was a complex seal you used. You're just going to have to practice with it until it becomes almost natural to you, like your Shadow clones." He looked on ahead, watching the renewed red-head wave back at them, "So, what do you think?" He asked, jerking his thumb at her, "Looks pretty good on her, doesn't it?"

Naruto took in Tayuya's new attire, consisting of a blue kimono top that was trimmed in lite pink around the edges. Around her waist was a shiny Konoha hitai-ate that she had been surprised to receive...surprised, but grateful. All in all, with her renewed energy, and healed injuries...Naruto thought she looked cuter when she was sleeping.

"Least she's walking on her own," Naruto grumbled, "So when is Baa-chan gonna send us a mission, anyway?"

"Not sure," Jiraiya shrugged, "I guess when she feels like sending one."

Naruto just groaned, "Jeez, talk about taking her sweet time."

Jiraiya rolled his eyes at the boy, "Come on, Gaki, you got promoted to Chunin, and it's gonna take a while before you can make Jonin. It's attitudes like your's that make you hit the wall."

"Yeah, but - "

"Oi, Shithead! Jiisan!" Tayuya yelled from ahead, waving back at them, "I can see Kiri!"

=|Meanwhile|=

Now, normally, when the academy classes let out for the day, Umino Iruka would usually take time to look over the days assignments handed in from the students throughout the day, but today he seemed to be looking back over some old photos of students that had graduated, his focus on a certain blond knucklehead he favored.

A smile played at his lips as he looked over the many times Naruto would appear battered and bruised after he had gotten through with him once he caught up with the blonde prankster for skipping class, or pulling some ridiculous prank that should never catch a shinobi unawares, but always did.

That right there had shown him that Naruto had unimaginable potential as a shinobi. Even going as far as the pull one over on the Anbu corps. Thinking about how he'd actually outrun the task force made him smile wider, the sight of a full squadron of Anbu chasing the blond while wearing brightly colored Anbu attire was not something he could ever forget. How he'd managed that feet was beyond him.

Then he looked down sadly at a photo of the newly formed Team Seven, both Naruto and Sasuke looking pissed as hell for being on the same team, and dear little Sakura beaming at the camera.

"If only that could have lasted longer," Iruka sighed, closing the album. Then there was a soft knock at the door, "Hai?"

He was a little surprised when the door opened and Shizune stepped in. It was a rare thing for her to come down to the academy for anything let alone after classes had let out. "U-Umino-san?" A faint blush dusted her cheeks. "Do you have a moment?"

"Of course," Iruka set the album back in his desk drawer, "What can I do for you, Shizune-san?"

Shizune felt a nervous fluttering in her stomach. Now being a mednin, she was sure that her elevated heart rate, and breathing were products of something else rather than her nerves...but...they could be a big part of it, couldn't they? "W-well, I was wondering, since Tsunade-sama gave me the evening off, i-if maybe you would -"

Iruka would have dropped to the floor had he not schooled his emotions. Was she trying to ask him out? On a date?! Her, of all people? This was like him winning the lottery! Unknown to Shizune, the poor thing being worked to the bone because of her...employer, the men of the village had taken a shine to the young woman the moment she had re-entered the village. Not only was she a well-known medic, but she was a Jonin-level shinobi, kindhearted and very beautiful.

Iruka gulped, "Um, there's a nice place just around the corner from the weapons shop," he suggested, "We...we could have a bite and talk about a few things?"

Shizune smiled, and nodded, "That sounds nice."

=x=

Jiraiya was taken quite b surprise when the arrived in the hidden village of mist. The village was filled and decorated for a celebration. Through the streets danced people in masks and fine silken wear fit for daimyos. The entire village was alive with sights and colors neither child had ever seen before. For Tayuya, it was the first time in her life that she had seen a festival, or anything close to it.

Jiraiya couldn't keep the smile from his face as the young kunoichi flitted here and there to see what the stalls had to offer in food and goods. Then his attention turned to his young chunnin apprentice. A shadow crossed the boy's features that never should have been there on such a young face. "Naruto?"

Naruto didn't look at him. His eyes were on the people, as if he were expecting something from them. But nothing happened. No yelling or screaming at him. Nothing thrown at him. There were nothing but smiling faces. Happy people that looked their way and smiled in greeting, inviting them to join the festivities.

A small smile crept its way to the blond's face. "I think I'm gonna like it here."

"Oi, Shithead-kun!" Tayuya yelled, running back up to him, in her hands two sticks holding grilled squid, "You gotta taste this!" She handed one to him as she bit into her own.

"Where did you get this?" Naruto asked, raising an eyebrow, "You didn't steal it, did you?"

"No," Tayuya sneered at him, "The stall guy gave them to me when I told him that it was my first time in this kinda party!"

For a moment, Naruto was still skeptical, but then he shrugged and bit into the meat, "Mine, too."

Jiraiya chuckled, "Then you should both go enjoy yourselves," he reached into his robes, producing a scroll, "Take this. It's part of our traveling money, but I think it would be good for both of you to have a little fun...and get some clothes that actually fit you." He commented, taking in Naruto's still tattered clothing. Tayuya's borrowed clothing fit her, but they didn't suit her.

True, she looked cute, at least to Naruto, but she was used to clothes that were meant for close combat. And she felt almost naked without her cap, which she had left by the river days ago with her other ruined clothing.

Jiraiya then escorted them to a clothing store he knew around the village. There he had to hold Naruto back from going straight for anything bright orange. A thought shared by a certain fox. Tayuya was quick to find something similar to what she once wore in combat, but Jiraiya also steered her away from that for the time being, and both young shinobi were ushered toward the finer things. For Naruto, he picked out a set of grey-blue short shirt kimono and matching pants, much like his own. Naruto grumbled at this, but tried the set on for his sake.

Moments later after he was dressed, he found that he liked the look, but insisted on something brightly colored, and picked out a sleeveless burnt-orange haori that had a black flame pattern along the bottom. Like he normally did, his steel plate armor was hidden away beneath the cloth. Jiraiya sighed, but allowed the one bit of orange as Naruto did look good in it...for once.

His sandals were still well within use, and he outright refused the wooden geta that the toad sage pushed his way.

Tayuya was a bit more stubbon about changing her look. She liked what she had picked out. It was almost exactly the same as what she had worn before, except for the color of the shirt. It was a deep, dark purple, her favorite color, yet the grey-ish clothing she had worn in Otogakure had been...required. But now that she was no longer associated with her village, she would wear the colors she wanted to wear.

Back home, long before she...left...her mother had loved sewing for her, and different shades of purple were her favorites. It was also the only thing that reminded the girl of her mother enough to even slightly remember her face. She wasn't going to budge.

Jiraiya relented, since she was still getting new clothes. The kimono she picked out was one of the darker shades, as she'd wanted, with black trim, and fit her well, resting just bellow her hips under the black obi. She'd also picked out a pair of black leggings like the ones she'd worn before, though these were shorter, ending just above her knees.

"Happy?" Jiraiya asked as the two came out, dressed in their new clothes, both nodding with a small smile from the girl, and a big grin from the blond. "Good, now Naruto, this'll be a good disguise for you. Traveling shinobi are rare, so it's better not to make a target out of yourself."

Naruto halted as he was about to retie his hitai-ate, "You mean I can't where this?"

"Sorry, kid," Jiriaya nodded, "But it's best that we don't draw attention to ourselves. Me, I'm a Sannin, meaning I have travel rights for every nation, but a pair of brats?"

"We're easy targets," Tayuya put in as she tried on a small black cap, smiling to herself as she liked the fit, "Or, so people would think, right, Jiisan?"

"That's right," he nodded, "And the more problems we encounter, the longer it'll take to return home in the long run. So we won't be shinobi for the next three years, unless Tsunade sends us on a mission. Understand?"

"I guess," Naruto sighed, and placed the head band inside his new robes with a slight pout.

"Good," the old man smiled as he paid for them before handing the scroll to them, "Now, take the rest of the money in this scroll, and go have fun for tonight. And I mean it, Gaki," he looked at Naruto, "Show yourselves a good time. This is your first time at a festival like this, so don't hold back...but try to stay out of trouble, alright?"

"Yeah," Naruto said in disappointment before slipping the piece into his new robes.

Tayuya just grinned and snatched the scroll from Jiraiya, and looped her right arm through Naruto's left, "Come on, Shithead! I wanna see the rest of the village!"

"Yipe!" Naruto yelped as he was dragged out the door, Jiraiya smiling after them along with a grinning store clerk.

"What a rambunctious pair," the woman commented, "one would think the girl had a thing for the boy the way she just flew off with him."

Jiraiya chuckled, in complete agreement with her.

Meanwhile, Tayuya was buzzing like a bee from one stall to another in wonder. From goldfish scooping to popping balloons with darts, all of this was so new to her that she may as well have been a little girl again.

"Slow down already!" Naruto whined, being jostled by the crowd as he was pulled along, "It's not like we're gonna miss anything!"

Tayuya just giggled, not bothering to look back at him, "But this is the first time I've really been able to see something like this! I wanna see everything!" Her good mood was infectious to the blond and he found himself smiling in turn and speeding up to match her, their hands still joined.

She halted a moment when they passed a ring toss stall, the prizes catching Tayuya's eyes. One in particular, a small plush fox. "How do I play this?"

Naruto just laughed, "You have to get a ring to land around one of the bottle necks." The girl nodded and paid for her rings. Unfortunately, throwing things was not her specialty, as Naruto soon discovered, when all three rings sailed right over the intended targets, missing completely.

"Fuck..." Tayuya moaned in despair, "I never was any good at throwing."

Naruto laughed again and bought his own, "Here, I'll show you how to do it." Then, quick as if he were throwing shurriken, the rings were launched at the intended bottle, and all three landed without a hitch.

"Nice job there, kid," the stall owner grinned, then jerked his thumb over at the prizes, "Which one ya want?"

Naruto looked at Tayuya expectantly. Tayuya just blushed, not expecting him to let her pick out a prize since he had won the game. She pointed to the little fox plushy. "The fox."

Naruto nearly laughed at the irony of that as he took the doll from the vendor and handed it over to her. Tayuya was still blushing as she held the stuffed animal to her chest. "Thank you," she said quietly.

=x=

Unbeknownst to the pair, a certain white-haired pervert of a sensei was sitting on the rooftops watching them as they moved around the village, a proud smile on his face because of the blond. Tayuya looked like she was having the time of her life, not even noticing that they were still hand-in-hand, or the fact that Naruto's smile looked ready to split his face in half.

"Yup, that's Minato's boy alright," he grinned as the pair made their way through the crowd. He remembered a scene like this one back when Minato and Kushina first started out. Of course, that date had...ended better for Minato than he'd thought. He was fifteen at the time, and Kushina was just getting used to the fact that she was head over heels for the boy as he was for her.

Like now, it had been Konoha's festival, celebrating Hashirama Senju's defeat of Madara Uchiha. It had gone as far as a young couple could have hoped. Though, according to Minato after confiding in Jiraiya, Kushina was as violent in love as she was in life. He couldn't remember how long he'd teased his poor student about those hickeys and bite marks.

Jiraiya was brought out of his musing as a puff of smoke erupted beside him, revealing a small slug. "Evening, Katsuyu-san. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Tsunade-sama has a mission for Naruto." The little slug said before looking around, "Oh, you're in Kiri? That makes things easier."

"Why is that?" Jiraiya asked in interest.

Katsuyu produce a small scroll from her mouth, "All the information you need is in there. You'll be performing an assassination."

"I see," Jiraiya said, taking the scroll, "Hime certainly isn't going to pull any punches, is she?"

Much to Katsuyu's confusion, he placed the scroll in his robes without even reading it. "Aren't you going to look it over?"

"Not tonight," he smiled, "the gakis are having too much fun right now." He motioned toward the streets where Naruto and Tayuya were laughing as Naruto won yet another prize. "Let them play for the evening before they have to think of such things."

Back with the two teens, Naruto had decided to take a break by the docks, his feet sore from running around so much. He dipped his feet in the lake, letting the cool waters soothe his feet. "Man, who knew that festivals like this could be so tiring?"

_**It's not the festival that was tiring, Runt, but the company you kept.**_The Kyuubi chuckled, _**Never in my life have I seen a female so excited about festivities. **_

_Yeah, but she had fun, at least._ Naruto chuckled, thinking about the beautiful smile on the girl's face the entire night. And the way she held onto that little fox he'd won for her? It was like she expected someone to take it.

"Oi, Shithead-kun," Tayuya's voice drifted to him from behind. "How's the water?"

"Great," Naruto sighed, kicking his feet a little. Tayuya kicked off her sandals and plopped herself down beside him, a bottle in her hands, "Where'd you get that?"

"I got it from one of the shops," Tayuya grinned, bringing the bottle of sake up with a flourish, "I showed him my headband and he let me buy it."

Naruto smirked as she set the bottle down and pulled out a couple of cups, "Old enough to kill -"

"Old enough to drink," Tayuya finished, popping the bottle open, "Ever drank before?"

"Nope," Naruto sighed, "After seeing Baa-chan in action, I never thought about it much, just that I didn't want to end up like her."

Tayuya gave him a curious look as she poured them both a cup, "You keep talking about this 'Baa-chan' lady," she said, "So who the hell is she?"

"Oh, she's the Godaime Hokage," Naruto said, and Tayuya sputtered.

"You-you call the Hokage a fucking _granny_?!"

"Che, yeah!" Naruto laughed, taking one of the cups from her, "She's just as old as Pervy Sage, and she uses a _Henge_ to make herself look younger! And she calls me brat all the time! The only reason I never pranked her was because she's crazy strong! She sent me flying with a flick of a finger!"

"Fucking awesome," Tayuya smiled, "Makes me wish she'd found me instead of that hebi-teme. All he ever taught me was Genjutsu, and how to play the flute." She threw back her head and downed the drink, gasping. "Damn!"

"That bad, huh?" Naruto smirked before taking a sip of his own drink. It was bitter, but with a hint of sweetness that burned his throat. It wasn't bad. Tayuya looked at him in hopes that he was effected as she was, but his face was free of heat as he downed his sake. Tayuya, however, was already feeling it, but, not one to be out shone, she poured for them again.

For a time, they drank in silence, just enjoying the evening. Tayuya's mind began to wander. "Ne, Naruto?"

Naruto jolted, "Y-yeah?"

He looked over at her, seeing that her face was almost completely red, "You ever killed anyone?"

That was a strange question. Of course he had. He was a shinobi. It was his job to do whatever he had to do if he could complete his mission. "Yeah, a few...why?"

Tayuya set her cup down, and drew her knees up to her chest. "Yeah...but you were a shinobi when you killed, right?...I...killed before I became a shinobi."

Naruto was silent, not really sure how to answer her. He was taught from a young age that killing was a necessary evil in the world of shinobi. Sure, he didn't care for killing, but he would do it if he had little to no choice about it, and sometimes he had gladly moved in for a kill shot as he'd done for Doto in Yuki no Kuni. That had been his first kill.

"Did you kill in self-defense?" He asked.

"Sorta," Tayuya said, then looked at him, her face saddened. "We're..._friends_, right?"

"Of course," he said without hesitation.

"No matter what?" She asked.

"No matter what," Naruto promised.

Tayuya smiled a little and set her chin on her knees, looking out over the water. "When I was a little girl, probably about six, I lived in a small colony on the borders of Tsuchi no Kuni. We weren't a successful colony, but we got by. My parents said they found me sitting on their doorstep as a baby. I couldn't have been happier even if they were my real parents. I loved them so much," she sniffled and wiped a tear from her eye, "Okaa-san was so wonderful, never complaining when we didn't have enough to eat, and always making sure there was something to put on the table. Otou-san was a bit of a drinker, but he was never mean to us. He worked hard to give us the best life possible. When I got old enough, I went around the colony looking for work where I could find it. They paid me with a little food or money when they had it, or helped our family out when we needed it in return."

"Sounds like a tough life," Naruto commented, remembering his own childhood. So many nights alone on the streets. In a way, he envied Tayuya for her family. At least she had known that sort of bond.

"It was," Tayuya smiled in memory, "But we had what we needed." Her face fell once more, "When I turned seven, Kaa-chan got sick...we tried to get medicine, but we had so little in the colony, and Iwa wouldn't help us. Tou-san did what he could, but she didn't get any better. I brought as much food as I could to keep her strong, but she couldn't keep anything down...she..."

"I get it," Naruto sighed, looking down into his cup.

Tayuya sighed, "After she died, Tou-san changed. He drank more. Barely ate...got angry..."

"Tayuya - "

"One night," she went on hurriedly, "I came home and the house was in shambles, and he was yelling at someone...then he saw me." Her frame shook, "He started throwing things, and yelling. Then he started coming after me...I ran...but I was just a kid, and I wasn't very fast, and he was a full grown man...he caught me. He had a knife on him, and tried to stab me. I kicked and screamed for help, but no one could hear me. He said it was my fault Kaa-chan died, that I'd made her sick. I was scared. I didn't want to die...so I grabbed a rock...and beat him off." She shivered, "There was so much blood...he didn't move...when I tried to move him...he was so cold..."

Naruto reached out unconsciously and took hold of her hand, taking it away from her knees. "Don't say anything else, alright?" He said, then drew her against him and put his arm around her. "I don't care...what you did, you did to survive...I...nearly killed my best friend. He nearly killed me, too. I wasn't sorry. I just regret that I couldn't bring him back like I promised someone."

Tayuya slumped against him, making the blond look down at her. Her face was still flushed from the alcohol, and her eyes were closed, sleeping. _She fell asleep?_ Naruto thought, _That's typical. I just poured my heart out to her, and she falls into a drunken stupor...wait, we drank the same amount...how come I'm not conked out? _

_**You're a Jinchuuriki,** _Kyuubi answered, _**because of our healing powers, we don't allow our containers to get drunk. So you can drink as much as you wish without consequence...unless I want you to get drunk. **_

_Gee, thanks...what am I supposed to do with her, now? We can't stay out here, _Naruto sighed.

_**The pervert is close, just call out to him, and he will most likely pop up.**_Naruto growled, "Pervy Sage, get down here!"

Sure enough, only a moment later, Jiraiya landed lightly down on the docks. "Have a nice time?"

"Yeah, yeah, it was great," Naruto sighed, and picked the girl up in his arms, "Now where're we staying?"

=|Back with Shizune (**Lime**)|=

The door to Shizune's apartment burst open as an enamoured pair bumbled into the room, locked in a passionate embrace. It had been a lovely date in Shizune's opinion. They'd talked for hours upon hours. Iruka was sweet and charming. They'd had a few drinks, nothing heavy, which surprised her, and Iruka had even taken her to a small dancing hall that was growing in popularity. She hadn't had so much fun in years, not even when Tsunade was on a winning streak.

When Iruka had walked her home, he'd leaned in to kiss her goodnight...and all hell had broke loose. The moment their lips touched, she'd practically melted, and clutched him to her, and pulled him inside.

As the pair stumbled in, Iruka's brain was on autopilot. It was only supposed to be a chaste kiss, but that idea was quickly thrown out the window has the woman's fingers wound into his hair and undid his ponytail. Shizune giggled as his hands passed over her back, absently wondering if they'd be able to make it to her bed. As his idle hands became...less idle, she didn't think they would. Within moments, her kimono fell to the floor, leaving her in nothing but a slip of a shirt she normally wore unless she was out on a mission, and her underwear.

Iruka was quick to shed his own clothing. His vest and shirt gone in a few moments as he broke their kiss. Shizune was quick to resume the kiss, plastering herself against him as he pushed her further into the room, the back of her knees coming up against her bed. She grinned and gave a hard pull, causing both of them to fall to the mattress.

Iruka gave out a breathless laugh, "Gonna have to thank Tsunade-sama for this night off."

Shizune gave him a slightly predatory look as she shrugged out of her shirt, revealing her breasts to him, "Oh, I wouldn't thank her just yet, Iruka-kun." She cooed at him before bringing him down, "At least...not until tomorrow."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Ding, ding, there goes Shizune :p So here we find out a little more about Tayuya's past, though with the aid of a little sake, she begins to enjoy life a little bit at a time. And don't think I've forgotten about their mission, we see that in the next chapter. Meantime, heaven help the poor girl. She's gonna have one bad hangover!<strong>_


End file.
